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 I Think The President Was Clear - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 7/23/09 — Sunday, July 26, 2009 —  MR. GIBBS: All right, is everybody done with their strawberry pie? Fire away.Q Robert, some people thought it was a little unusual that the President waded into the matter between Professor Gates and the Cambridge police -- a little uncharacteristic of him -- when the facts are in dispute. You know, this is the sort of thing he might ordinarily say, I don't -- you know, I don't know all the facts. Why do you -- MR. GIBBS: Well, he did -- let's go through what he did say, because he did say, one, Professor Gates was a friend of his. He did say he didn't have all the facts. I think we've all read in the newspaper at least a baseline of fact that the President outlined first by saying you have an unidentified individual who jimmies open a door of a house; the police are called based on that; the police respond -- which you would expect a series of those events to transpire like that. I think what the President ultimately talked about was, obviously there was a point at which, inside of the house, both parties involved, probably recognizing that the situation originally responded to wasn't what was actually happening, in terms of a crime being committed, and at that point -- at that point cooler heads on all sides should have prevailed. I think that's what the President was denoting in the ultimate arrest and the since dropping of those charges. Q Why do you think he wanted to weigh in on this, though? He obviously -- MR. GIBBS: I appreciate your -- I appreciate the ability at nationally televised news conferences to pass on questions like it was a game show. But I haven't been afforded that -- I don't think the President has been afforded those possibilities before. But I will certainly pass along your suggestion. Q But he did go so far as to say that the police behaved "stupidly." MR. GIBBS: Well, again, I think -- again, as I just said, I think there's a point in this where it becomes clear that the situation as it was originally called in is not the current situation, right? At some point it becomes clear that the individual in the house owns the house. And I think that's -- at that point, cooler heads likely should have prevailed on both sides. [...] Q And when you say that cooler heads should have prevailed on all sides, you're saying Professor Gates should have also handled it differently? MR. GIBBS: Well, look, again, I wasn't there, the President wasn't there. I think at some point, again, you have a situation that is not as it -- as not as it was called in. I think when somebody -- I think being arrested in your own home for being in your home -- I think the fact that those charges have been dropped denote that there clearly was a point at which this got far out of -- far out of control. Q But does he regret his use of language in saying "acting stupidly," because online polls show lots of people of Massachusetts were disappointed that he used those words while acknowledging that he wasn't in full possession of the facts. MR. GIBBS: Again, I think if you look at the fact that a situation got as far out of control at a certain point as it did underscores the fact that things were going in a direction that neither wanted it to go in. [...] Q Robert, just to be clear, the President doesn't regret the language or his statement last night? MR. GIBBS: No, I think the President -- again, I think the President was clear in, again, denoting that at a certain point -- let me be clear. He was not calling the officers stupid, okay? He was ensuring -- I think, again, denoting that at a certain point the situation got far out of hand, and I think all sides understand that. Air Force One | President Obama | Presidential Press Conference |Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, President Obama, Presidential Press Conference, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 10:30:00 PM  They Do Care About This, Jake - White House Press Briefing by Robert Gibbs 6/24/09 — Thursday, June 25, 2009 — Q All right. I've got a procedural question about yesterday's news conference. What led to your decision to plant a designated hitter right here to ask the President a question? And what kind of a message do you think that sends to the American people and to the world about the kind of free-flow and pure questioning that's been expected at presidential news conferences? MR. GIBBS: Well, I think it did nothing more than underscore that free-flow. Peter, that was a question from an Iranian in Iran, using the same type of manner and method to get that information as, I guess, many of you and virtually every one of your outlets has done, because in this country we enjoy the freedom of the press. In Iran, as many of you know, your colleagues have been dismissed. They've been kicked out. Some of them have been rounded up. There aren't journalists that can speak for the Iranian people. What the President did was take a question from an Iranian. That's, I think, the very powerful message that that sent just yesterday. Q Couldn't he have accomplished that without you guys escorting someone through here and planting him the room? MR. GIBBS: Did you get a question yesterday from an Iranian that you had hoped to asked the President? Q No, I did not. MR. GIBBS: Well, then I guess the answer to that would have been, no. Q Is this going to become a regular feature of President Obama's news conference, that you all are going to bring people in here that you select to ask questions? MR. GIBBS: Well, let's understand -- let's be clear, Peter. I think you understand this, so -- but I'll repeat it for your benefit. There was no guarantee that the questioner would be picked. There was no idea of what the exact question would be. I'll let you down easily: A number of questions that we went though in prep you all asked. Iran dominated the news conference, not surprisingly. But Peter, I think it was important and the President thought it was important to take a question using the very same methods, again, that many of you all are using to report information on the ground. I don't have any -- I won't make any apologies for that. Q Can I follow that one up, please? MR. GIBBS: Sure. Q Thank you. MR. GIBBS: Get the mic ready. Q Aren't you -- you and the President aware that this cast suspicion that all of such questions may be presidentially planted? MR. GIBBS: Well, you know what? Instead, Lester, of giving you an answer from here, I'll ask that you ask Chuck, Jennifer, Chip, Jake -- Q I'm not throwing suspicion on them; you are. MR. GIBBS: No, no -- Q I mean, no, no -- MR. GIBBS: I'm sorry. I was -- can I give you 30 seconds to get your question straight? Q Yes, of course. MR. GIBBS: Major and others that asked questions yesterday, ask them right now if they knew they were getting a question yesterday -- go ahead, ask one of them. Go ahead. Q Well, he makes a good point, because -- MR. GIBBS: No, no, I make -- Q -- there are a lot of people out there -- MR. GIBBS: Let me make -- hold on, Chip. Q -- who incorrectly believe that we ask questions that are preapproved. And doesn't this add -- MR. GIBBS: Do you? Do you? Q Of course not. MR. GIBBS: Okay, so how did they get that misperception -- Q But doesn't this add to that perception -- MR. GIBBS: No. Q -- and doesn't this allow -- MR. GIBBS: Chip, I feel like you have -- Q -- (inaudible) do what we do? MR. GIBBS: I feel -- hold on, hold on. Q So you don't know -- MR. GIBBS: Well, let me -- Q You don't know -- MR. GIBBS: Since I'm not a journalist and I play the spokesman on TV, let me answer one of the questions, okay? (Laughter.) One of the things I love, Lester, is you move the microphone toward your mouth when you laugh as if the sound might not pick that up. (Laughter.) All right. Leaving that aside for a second, leaving that aside for a second -- Q I have one follow-up. (Laughter.) MR. GIBBS: No, no, I can -- I can't in my wildest dreams believe it's only one, but just hold on -- Q It's only one. MR. GIBBS: No, no, I know, but let me -- Chip and Chuck have questions that I think are important to answer. I don't know how that perception comes out there, but I feel confident that if you feel that perception is out there, that you could deal with it. CBS has gotten a question on all four of the news conferences. I don't know if it's been you on all four. Have you ever told us what your question is? Q Certainly not. MR. GIBBS: Have you? Q Of course not. MR. GIBBS: Have you? Q Nope. MR. GIBBS: You've only gotten one, so -- have you? (Laughter.) Peter, have you? Q Certainly not. MR. GIBBS: Did Mark know? Did Mark tell us? Q Certainly not, and neither would I. MR. GIBBS: Major? Q No. MR. GIBBS: Jake? Q I don't think he would have called on me. MR. GIBBS: Michael? Q We didn't get one. We didn't get one. MR. GIBBS: But did you give us a heads up on your question last time? Q What do you think? (Laughter.) MR. GIBBS: There you go. Good answer. I like that. That's actually -- you might get one next time because that was a keen answer. Ann, did you let us know? Q I think these are rhetorical -- MR. GIBBS: Okay. They are rhetorical questions because they're easily answered. Q Robert, in a third-world country -- in a third-world country, and we've seen a press conference with -- Q A planted question. Q -- a planted question, the perception -- MR. GIBBS: The question wasn't planted. That question wasn't planted. Q Questioner, planted questioner -- the perception, you know, it's something that would have colored the entire -- MR. GIBBS: Chuck, is Richard Engel reporting from Tehran using Twitter? Q We have a reporter -- MR. GIBBS: Is he? Q We have a reporter in Tehran. MR. GIBBS: So Richard is not. Q Richard is not, no. But have a reporter in Tehran. MR. GIBBS: But Richard is not using Twitter? Richard is not using information he got from people -- Q Of course, we're using information all over the place, but we usually have live bodies on the ground -- Q But, Robert, as many of us who were on the campaign trail remember, in Iowa, when there were two episodes where candidate Obama's chief rival, Hillary Clinton, was accused of having planted questioners in town halls -- MR. GIBBS: No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. No, no, no, no -- Q -- it became a question of her authenticity -- MR. GIBBS: No, no, no, no. Q -- or her ability to handle town halls. MR. GIBBS: No, no, no, no. Let's be clear. Not that I knew I should call on Major, right? I don't know what -- forget the Iowa outlet -- call on Major, because the question he's going to ask is X, okay? You're saying -- and I will be definitive -- nobody at any outlet has ever told me that they were going to ask a certain question, including the fact that I was going to pick or the President might pick somebody from the Huffington Post to ask a question by an Iranian, but didn't know what the question was. Q That's a big difference. Q Why not use a seating chart and just let the President call on who he is, rather than go to specific -- MR. GIBBS: Well, you know -- Q Robert, what are the rules to be followed by the President at the press conference? MR. GIBBS: What are the rules? Q Yes. MR. GIBBS: They're not written. I'm happy -- look, I'm happy to have you guys yell. I'm cool with that. Q Okay. MR. GIBBS: You want to do that? Q Just one more. MR. GIBBS: No, no. Let's -- you know what? I'll forget where I've gone, right? I'm going to --go ahead, yell a little bit louder so I can almost hardly hear you. Yes, ma'am. Q The perception is though, however -- MR. GIBBS: Well -- Q Let me finish, please. MR. GIBBS: No, no. I'm not even going to let you finish. On the first day in political science class, the teacher says, there's perception, and there's reality. Q Well, the reality is -- MR. GIBBS: Every one of you all has talked about the reality -- Q -- printed out this -- MR. GIBBS: -- so I'm not going to deal with the perception. Q Robert, allow me -- please allow me to finish, okay? MR. GIBBS: We live in America. Speak. Q Thank you. MR. GIBBS: There you go. Q The perception is this is scripted, from the day -- MR. GIBBS: Well, it's wrong. Q Okay. MR. GIBBS: It's wrong. Q But from the day this administration walked in the door, there was a perception that you were calling people, telling them, you will be picked. And that was the perception, and it's out there. And then to put this person from the Huffington Post, it was awkward -- MR. GIBBS: April, you got picked. Did you get told you were going to get picked? Q I got picked, it was my first White House press conference pick. No, I was not told. I was surprised -- MR. GIBBS: Were you -- did you know what -- did I ask you what question? Q I don't think you know what I'm going to ask you when I ask questions. MR. GIBBS: That is more than a safe bet. Q But how do you decide on that list of people that you're going to say, the President has a list, I'm going to go through that? MR. GIBBS: It's just a series of educated guesses. Q Can anyone ask about something that the American people actually care about? Q They do care about this, Jake. They want to make sure that we are out there being accountable for them. They do want to know. Iran | President Obama | Presidential Press Conference | Press Briefing | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Iran, President Obama, Presidential Press Conference, Press Briefing, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 12:24:00 AM We've Been Entirely Consistent - Press Conference by the President 6/23/09 — Tuesday, June 23, 2009 — Like the rest of the world, we were impressed by the vigorous debate and enthusiasm that this election generated, particularly among young Iranians. We continue to monitor the entire situation closely, including reports of irregularities. THE PRESIDENT: All right? Major Garrett. Where's Major?June 13, 2009 Statement by Press Secretary Robert Gibbs on the Iranian Election Q Right here, sir. In your opening remarks, sir, you were -- you said about Iran that you were appalled and outraged. What took you so long to say those words? THE PRESIDENT: I don't think that's accurate. Track what I've been saying. Right after the election, I said that we had profound concerns about the nature of the election, but that it was not up to us to determine what the outcome was. As soon as violence broke out -- in fact, in anticipation of potential violence -- we were very clear in saying that violence was unacceptable, that that was not how governments operate with respect to their people. So we've been entirely consistent, Major, in terms of how we've approached this. My role has been to say the United States is not going to be a foil for the Iranian government to try to blame what's happening on the streets of Tehran on the CIA or on the White House; that this is an issue that is led by and given voice to the frustrations of the Iranian people. And so we've been very consistent the first day, and we're going to continue to be consistent in saying this is not an issue about the United States; this is about an issue of the Iranian people. What we've also been consistent about is saying that there are some universal principles, including freedom of assembly and freedom of speech, making sure that governments are not using coercion and violence and repression in terms of how they interact with peaceful demonstrators. And we have been speaking out very clearly about that fact. Q Are Iranian diplomats still welcome at the embassy on the Fourth of July, sir? THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think as you're aware, Major, we don't have formal diplomatic relations with -- we don't have formal diplomatic relations with Iran. I think that we have said that if Iran chooses a path that abides by international norms and principles, then we are interested in healing some of the wounds of 30 years, in terms of U.S.-Iranian relations. But that is a choice that the Iranians are going to have to make. Q But the offer still stands? THE PRESIDENT: That's a choice the Iranians are going to have to make. International Relations | Iran | President Obama | Presidential Press Conference | White House Press Corps Labels: International Relations, Iran, President Obama, Presidential Press Conference, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 11:44:00 PM Obama's 100 Days Presidential Press Conference Coverage — Wednesday, April 29, 2009 — Obama Administration | President Obama | Presidential Press Conference | Twitter | Video | White House Press Corps Labels: Obama Administration, President Obama, Presidential Press Conference, Twitter, Video, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 5:33:00 PM The State Dictating Salaries - London Press Conference by the President 4/2/09 — Thursday, April 02, 2009 —  PRESIDENT OBAMA: All right, let me sprinkle in another -- it's got to be an international person. All right, this young lady right there. Q Mr. President, Emma Alberici from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. At the moment, in the U.S., the U.K., and in Australia, executive salaries and bonuses are decided in the boardrooms of major publicly listed companies. Who will be making those decisions on salaries and bonuses as a result of the agreement you've made here today? And if it is still the boards, will they be guided by principles or legislation? PRESIDENT OBAMA: The principles that we outlined I think put in place or move us in the direction of what I consider to be best practices, which is that there is some accountability with respect to executive compensation. Now, theoretically, that should be the shareholders. But the way that too many corporations have operated for too long is that you have a CEO who basically selects his board; the board, in a fairly cozy relationship oftentimes with the executive, hires a executive compensation firm, which, surprisingly, tends to think that it's necessary to retain the best talent to pay people $20 or $30 million a year; and we get into the kinds of habits and practices that I think have not been -- have not served shareholders well, I think ultimately distort the decision-making of many CEOs. When I was in the United States Senate, I actually worked on a piece of legislation that would -- made the simple proposition that executive compensation should be subject to a shareholder vote, even if it was nonbinding, so that there was transparency and accountability and perhaps a shame function that would take place. And that principle, I think, is reflected in these guidelines. What it says is, is that if you get shareholders involved and those shareholders are given a set of principles and best practices by which they can judge executive compensation, then you can still have outsized rewards and success for successful business people, but it will be based on not short-term performance, not three-month performance, not your ability to flip quick profits off products like derivatives that don't turn out to be particularly productive to the company, but based on sustained, effective growth. And that's what's embodied in these documents, and I think that you're going to see a lot of countries try to encourage that kind of transparency and accountability. It doesn't mean the state micromanaging -- ( sneezes) -- excuse me -- I've been fighting this all week -- it doesn't mean that we want the state dictating salaries; we don't. We -- I strongly believe in a free-market system, and as I -- as I think people understand in America, at least, people don't resent the rich; they want to be rich. And that's good. But we want to make sure that there's mechanisms in place that holds people accountable and produces results. Okay? Economy | G20 | International Relations | President Obama | Presidential Press Conference | White House Press Corps Labels: Economy, G20, International Relations, President Obama, Presidential Press Conference, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 9:01:00 PM Charity Begins With Higher Taxes - Press Conference by the President 3/24/09 — Wednesday, March 25, 2009 —  THE PRESIDENT: Mike Allen, Politico. Hi, Mike.Q Thank you, Mr. President. Are you reconsidering your plan to cut the interest rate deduction for mortgages and for charities? And do you regret having proposed that in the first place? THE PRESIDENT: No, I think it's -- I think it's the right thing to do, where we've got to make some difficult choices. Here's what we did with respect to tax policy. What we said was, that over the last decade, the average worker, the average family have seen their wages and incomes flat. Even at times where supposedly we were in the middle of an economic boom, as a practical matter, their incomes didn't go up. And so what we said, let's give them a tax cut, let's give them some relief, some help -- 95 percent of American families. Now, for the top 5 percent, they're the ones who typically saw huge gains in their income. I fall in that category. And what we've said is for those folks, let's not renew the Bush tax cuts, so let's go back to the rates that existed back in -- during the Clinton era when wealthy people were still wealthy and doing just fine; and let's look at the level in which people can itemize their deductions. And what we've said is let's go back to the rate that existed under Ronald Reagan. People are still going to be able to make charitable contributions. It just means, if you give $100 and you're in this tax bracket, at a certain point, instead of being able write off 36 or 39 percent, you're writing off 28 percent. Now, if it's really a charitable contribution, I'm assuming that that shouldn't be a determining factor as to whether you're given that $100 to the homeless shelter down the street. And so this provision would affect about 1 percent of the American people. They would still get deductions. It's just that they wouldn't be able to write off 39 percent. In that sense, what it would do is it would equalize -- when I give $100, I'd get the same amount of deduction as when some -- a bus driver, who's making $50,000 a year, or $40,000 a year gives that same $100. Right now he gets 28 percent -- he gets to write off 28 percent; I get to write off 39 percent. I don't think that's fair. So I think this was a good idea. I think it is a realistic way for us to raise some revenue from people who benefited enormously over the last several years. It's not going to cripple them; they'll still be well-to-do. And ultimately, if we're going to tackle the serious problems that we've got, then in some cases those who are more fortunate are going to have to pay a little bit more. Q But it's not the well-to-do people, it's the charities. Given what you just said, are you confident the charities are wrong when they contend that this would discourage giving? THE PRESIDENT: Yes, I am. I mean, if you look at the evidence, there's very little evidence that this has a significant impact on charitable giving. I'll tell you what has a significant impact on charitable giving, is a financial crisis in an economy that's contracting. And so the most important thing that I can do for charitable giving is to fix the economy; to get banks lending again, to get businesses opening their doors again, and to get people back to work again. Then I think charities will do just fine. Charity | President Obama | Presidential Press Conference | Taxes | White House Press Corps Labels: Charity, President Obama, Presidential Press Conference, Taxes, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 1:21:00 PM Prejudging the Deteriorating Situation - Joint Press Conference by President Obama and Prime Minister Harper of Canada 2/19/09 — Thursday, February 19, 2009 —  Q Thank you, Mr. President, Mr. Prime Minister. I have Afghanistan questions for you both. Mr. President, General McKiernan requested 30,000 extra troops; your new order calls for 17,000. How likely is it that you will make up that difference after the review you've mentioned? And more importantly, how long can we expect all U.S. combat troops to be in Afghanistan?And, Mr. Prime Minister, based on your discussions today, are you reconsidering the 2011 deadline for troop withdrawal, and are you also thinking about increasing economic aid to Afghanistan? PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, David, the precise reason that we're doing a review is because I think that over the last several years we took our eye off the ball, and there is a consensus of a deteriorating -- that there is a deteriorating situation in Afghanistan. I don't want to prejudge that review. I ordered the additional troops because I felt it was necessary to stabilize the situation there in advance of the elections that are coming up. But we have 60 days of work to do. They -- that review, which will be wide-ranging, will then result in a report that's presented to me. And from -- at that point, we will be able to, I think, provide you with some clearer direction in terms of how we -- how we intend to approach Afghanistan. In terms of length, how long we might be there, obviously that's going to be contingent on the strategy we develop out of this review. And I'm not prejudging that, as well. I should mention, just to preempt, or to anticipate Prime Minister Harper's -- the question directed at him, that I certainly did not press the Prime Minister on any additional commitments beyond the ones that have already been made. All I did was to compliment Canada on not only the troops that are there, the 108 that have fallen as a consequence of engagement in Afghanistan, but also the fact that Canada's largest foreign aid recipient is Afghanistan. There has been extraordinary effort there, and we just wanted to make sure that we were saying thank you. PRIME MINISTER HARPER: Just very quickly, as you probably know, it was just last year that we were able to get through Parliament a bipartisan resolution extending our military engagement in Afghanistan for an additional close to four years at that point. As we move forward, we anticipate an even greater engagement on economic development. That was part of the strategy that we adopted. I would just say this -- you know, obviously we're operating within a parliamentary resolution -- I would just say this in terms of the United States looking at its own future engagement. We are highly appreciative of the fact the United States is going to be a partner with us on the ground in Kandahar. The goal of our military engagement, its principal goal right now, beyond day-to-day security, is the training of the Afghan army so the Afghans themselves can become responsible for their day-to-day security in that country. I'm strongly of the view, having led -- you know, as a government leader, having been responsible now for a military mission in Kandahar province, that we are not, in the long term through our own efforts, going to establish peace and security in Afghanistan; that that job ultimately can be done only by the Afghans themselves. So I would hope that all strategies that come forward have the idea of an end date, of a transition to Afghan responsibility for security, and to greater Western partnership for economic development. Afghanistan | Canada | President Obama | Presidential Press Conference | War on Terror | White House Press Corps Labels: Afghanistan, Canada, President Obama, Presidential Press Conference, War on Terror, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 10:46:00 PM The Party Now Is Over - Press Conference by the President 2/9/09 — Tuesday, February 10, 2009 — Q Thank you, Mr. President. In your opening remarks, you talked about that if your plan works the way you want it to work, it's going to increase consumer spending. But isn't consumer spending or overspending how we got into this mess? And if people get money back into their pockets, do you not want them saving it or paying down debt first before they start spending money into the economy? THE PRESIDENT: Well, first of all, I don't think it's accurate to say that consumer spending got us into this mess. What got us into this mess initially were banks taking exorbitant, wild risks with other people's monies based on shaky assets. And because of the enormous leverage where they had $1 worth of assets and they were betting $30 on that $1, what we had was a crisis in the financial system. That led to a contraction of credit, which in turn meant businesses couldn't make payroll or make inventories, which meant that everybody became uncertain about the future of the economy, so people started making decisions accordingly -- reducing investment, initiated layoffs -- which in turn made things worse. Now, you are making a legitimate point, Chuck, about the fact that our savings rate has declined and this economy has been driven by consumer spending for a very long time -- and that's not going to be sustainable. You know, if all we're doing is spending and we're not making things, then over time other countries are going to get tired of lending us money and eventually the party is going to be over. Well, in fact, the party now is over. Economy | President Obama | Presidential Press Conference | Stimulus Package | White House Press Corps Labels: Economy, President Obama, Presidential Press Conference, Stimulus Package, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 7:43:00 PM Hulu & Twitter Coverage of President Obama's First Press Conference 2/9/09 — Monday, February 09, 2009 — President Obama | Presidential Press Conference | Twitter | White House Press Corps Labels: President Obama, Presidential Press Conference, Twitter, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 7:30:00 PM George We Hardly Knew Ye - Press Conference by the President 1/12/09 — Monday, January 12, 2009 —  THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Tapper. We have been through a lot together. As I look through the room, I see Jake, Mike, Herman, Ann Compton. Just seemed like yesterday that -- that I was on the campaign trail and you were analyzing my speeches and my policies. And I see a lot of faces that travel with me around the world and -- to places like Afghanistan and Iraq and Africa. I see some new faces, which goes to show there's some turnover in this business. Through it all, it's been -- I have respected you. Sometimes didn't like the stories that you wrote or reported on. Sometimes you misunderestimated me. But always the relationship I have felt has been professional. And I appreciate it. I appreciate -- I do appreciate working with you. My friends say, what is it like to deal with the press corps? I said, these are just people trying to do the best they possibly can. And so here at the last press conference, I'm interested in answering some of your questions. But mostly I'm interested in saying thank you for the job. Ben. Q Thank you for those comments, Mr. President. Here's a question. I'm wondering if you plan to ask Congress for the remaining $350 billion in bail money. And in terms of the timing, if you do that before you leave office, sir, are you motivated in part to make life a little easier for President-Elect Obama? THE PRESIDENT: I have talked to the President-elect about this subject. And I told him that if he felt that he needed the $350 billion, I would be willing to ask for it. In other words, if he felt it needed to happen on my watch. The best course of action, of course, is to convince enough members of the Senate to vote positively for the -- for the request. And, you know, that's all I can share with you, because that's all I know. Q So you haven't made the request yet? THE PRESIDENT: Well, he hasn't asked me to make the request yet. And I don't intend to make the request unless he specifically asks me to make it. He's -- you know, I've had my third conversation with him, and I genuinely mean what I say. I wish him all the very best. I've found him to be a very smart and engaging person. And that lunch the other day was interesting, to have two guys who are nearly 85, two 62-year-olders, and a 47-year-old -- kind of the classic generational statement. And one common area, at least the four of us, we all had different circumstances and experiences, but one thing is we've all experienced what it means to assume the responsibility of the presidency. And President-Elect Obama is fixing to do that. And he'll get sworn in, and then they'll have the lunch and all the -- you know, all the deal up there on Capitol Hill. And then he'll come back and go through the inauguration and then he'll walk in the Oval Office, and there will be a moment when the responsibilities of the President land squarely on his shoulders. Toby. Yes, we'll get everybody. Q Thank you, Mr. President. Do you believe that the Gaza conflict will have ended by the time you leave office? Do you approve of the way that Israel has conducted it? And why were you unable to achieve the peace deal that you had sought? THE PRESIDENT: Remind me of the three points, will you, because I'm getting -- Q Will it end -- THE PRESIDENT: -- I'm getting a little older. Q Will it end by the time you leave office? Do you approve of the -- THE PRESIDENT: I hope so. I'm for a sustainable cease-fire. And a definition of a sustainable cease-fire is that Hamas stops firing rockets into Israel. And there will not be a sustainable cease-fire if they continue firing rockets. I happen to believe the choice is Hamas's to make. And we believe that the best way to ensure that there is a sustainable cease-fire is to work with Egypt to stop the smuggling of arms into the Gaza that enables Hamas to continue to fire rockets. And so countries that supply weapons to Hamas have got to stop. And the international community needs to continue to pressure them to stop providing weapons. Hamas, obviously, if they're interested in a sustainable cease-fire, needs to stop arming. And then, of course, countries contingent to the Gaza need to work to stop the smuggling. And it's a difficult -- difficult task. I mean, there's tunnels and, you know, great opportunities for people who want to continue to try to disrupt democracy to provide the weapons to do so. Second part of your question, please, ma'am? Q Do you approve of the Israeli conduct in this? THE PRESIDENT: I think Israel has a right to defend herself. Obviously in any of these kinds of situations, I would hope that she would continue to be mindful of innocent folks, and that they help, you know, expedite the delivery of humanitarian aid. And third, why haven't we achieved peace? That's a good question. It's been a long time since they've had peace in the Middle East. Step one is to have a vision for what peace would look like. And in 2002, on the steps of the Rose Garden, I gave a speech about a two-state solution -- two states, two democracies living side by side in peace. And we have worked hard to advance that idea. First thing is to convince all parties that the two states were necessary for peace. And one thing that's happened is, is that most people in the Middle East now accept the two-state solution as the best way for peace. Most Palestinians want their own state, and most Israelis understand there needs to be a democracy on their border in order for there to be long-lasting peace. The challenge, of course, has been to lay out the conditions so that a peaceful state can emerge -- in other words, helping the Palestinians in the West Bank develop security forces, which we have worked hard to do over the past years. And those security forces are now becoming more efficient, and Prime Minister Fayyad is using them effectively. The challenge is to develop -- help the Palestinians develop a democracy -- I mean, and a vibrant economy in their -- that will help lead to democracy. And the challenge, of course, is always complicated by the fact that people are willing to murder to stop the advance of freedom. And so the -- Hamas, or for that matter al Qaeda, or other extremist groups, are willing to use violence to prevent free states from emerging. And that's the big challenge. And so the answer is -- will this ever happen? I think it will. And I know we have advanced the process. Yes, Suzanne. Finally got your name right, after how many years? Six years? Q Eight years. (Laughter.) THE PRESIDENT: Eight years. You used to be known as Suzanne. Now you're "Suz-ahn." Q "Suz-ahn." Thank you. (Laughter.) THE PRESIDENT: I'm "Gahge." (Laughter.) Q In your 2002 State of the Union address, you identified U.S. threats as an axis of evil -- Iran, Iraq and North Korea. Iraq is relatively calm; North Korea is no longer on the terrorist threat list. How would you define, if, in fact, there is an axis of evil? And what is the greatest and most urgent threat when it comes to security that Barack Obama has to deal with? THE PRESIDENT: The most urgent threat that he'll have to deal with, and other Presidents after him will have to deal with, is an attack on our homeland. You know, I wish I could report that's not the case, but there's still an enemy out there that would like to inflict damage on America -- Americans. And that will be the major threat. North Korea is still a problem. There is a debate in the intel community about how big a problem they are. But one of my concerns is that there might be a highly enriched uranium program. And therefore it is really important that out of the six-party talks comes a strong verification regime. In other words, in order to advance our relations with North Korea, the North Korean government must honor the commitments it made to allow for strong verification measures to be in place, to ensure that they don't develop a highly enriched uranium program, for example. So they're still dangerous, and Iran is still dangerous. Yes. Q You said in an interview earlier this weekend, one of these, I guess, exit interviews, that -- THE PRESIDENT: This is the ultimate exit interview. Q -- that you think the Republican Party needs to be more inclusive. Who needs to hear that message inside the Republican Party? THE PRESIDENT: You see, I am concerned that, in the wake of the defeat, that the temptation will be to look inward and to say, well, here's a litmus test you must adhere to. This party will come back. But the party's message has got to be that different points of view are included in the party. And -- take, for example, the immigration debate. That's obviously a highly contentious issue. And the problem with the outcome of the initial round of the debate was that some people said, well, Republicans don't like immigrants. Now, that may be fair or unfair, but that's what -- that's the image that came out. And, you know, if the image is we don't like immigrants, then there's probably somebody else out there saying, well, if they don't like the immigrants, they probably don't like me, as well. And so my point was, is that our party has got to be compassionate and broad-minded. I remember the 1964 elections. My dad happened to be running for the United State Senate then and, you know, got landslided with the Johnson landslide in the state of Texas. But it wasn't just George Bush who got defeated; the Republican Party was pretty well decimated at the time. At least that's what they -- I think that's how the pundits viewed it. And then '66 there was a resurgence. And the same thing can happen this time, but we just got to make sure our message is broad-gauged and compassionate; that we care about people's lives, and we've got a plan to help them improve their lives. Jake, yes. How you doing? Q I'm good. How you doing, sir? THE PRESIDENT: So what have you been doing since 2000 -- never mind. (Laughter.) Q Working my way to this chair. THE PRESIDENT: So are you going to be here for President Obama? Q I will. I will. THE PRESIDENT: That's a pretty cool job. Q It's not bad. THE PRESIDENT: Yes. (Laughter.) Q Yours might be better. THE PRESIDENT: Yes -- what, retirement? (Laughter.) Q In the past, when you've been asked to address bad poll numbers or your own popularity, you've said that history will judge that you did the right thing, that you thought you did the right thing. But without getting into your motives or your goals, I think a lot of people, including Republicans, including some members of your own administration, have been disappointed at the execution of some of your ideals, whether Iraq or Katrina or the economy. What would your closing message be to the American people about the execution of these goals? THE PRESIDENT: Well, first of all, hard things don't happen overnight, Jake. And when the history of Iraq is written, historians will analyze, for example, the decision on the surge. The situation was -- looked like it was going fine and then violence for a period of time began to throw -- throw the progress of Iraq into doubt. And rather than accepting the status quo and saying, oh, it's not worth it or the politics makes it difficult or, you know, the party may end up being -- you know, not doing well in the elections because of the violence in Iraq, I decided to do something about it -- and sent 30,000 troops in as opposed to withdrawing. And so that part of history is certain, and the situation did change. Now the question is, in the long run, will this democracy survive? And that's going to be the challenge for future Presidents. In terms of the economy, look, I inherited a recession, I am ending on a recession. In the meantime there were 52 months of uninterrupted job growth. And I defended tax cuts when I campaigned, I helped implement tax cuts when I was President, and I will defend them after my presidency as the right course of action. And there's a fundamental philosophical debate about tax cuts. Who best can spend your money, the government or you? And I have always sided with the people on that issue. Now, obviously these are very difficult economic times. When people analyze the situation, there will be -- this problem started before my presidency, it obviously took place during my presidency. The question facing a President is not when the problem started, but what did you do about it when you recognized the problem. And I readily concede I chunked aside some of my free market principles when I was told by chief economic advisors that the situation we were facing could be worse than the Great Depression. So I've told some of my friends who said -- you know, who have taken an ideological position on this issue -- why did you do what you did? I said, well, if you were sitting there and heard that the depression could be greater than the Great Depression, I hope you would act too, which I did. And we've taken extraordinary measures to deal with the frozen credit markets, which have affected the economy. Credit spreads are beginning to shrink; lending is just beginning to pick up. The actions we have taken, I believe, have helped thaw the credit markets, which is the first step toward recovery. And so, yes, look, there's plenty of critics in this business; I understand that. And I thank you for giving me a chance to defend a record that I am going to continue to defend, because I think it's a good, strong record. Jim. Q Thank you, Mr. President. I'd also like to ask you about your critics. THE PRESIDENT: Sure. You know any? (Laughter.) Q Well, a couple years ago, Charles Krauthammer, columnist and Harvard-trained psychiatrist, coined a term, "Bush derangement syndrome," to talk about your critics who disagreed with you most passionately -- not just your policies, but seemed to take an animosity towards you. I'm just wondering, as you look back, why you think you engendered such passionate criticism, animosity, and do you have any message specifically to those -- to that particular part of the spectrum of your critics? THE PRESIDENT: You know, most people I see, you know, when I'm moving around the country, for example, they're not angry. And they're not hostile people. And they -- we never meet people who disagree, that's just not true. I've met a lot of people who don't agree with the decisions I make. But they have been civil in their discourse. And so, I view those who get angry and yell and say bad things and, you know, all that kind of stuff, it's just a very few people in the country. I don't know why they get angry. I don't know why they get hostile. It's not the first time, however, in history that people have expressed themselves in sometimes undignified ways. I've been reading, you know, a lot about Abraham Lincoln during my presidency, and there was some pretty harsh discord when it came to the 16th President, just like there's been harsh discord for the 43rd President. You know, Presidents can try to avoid hard decisions and therefore avoid controversy. That's just not my nature. I'm the kind of person that, you know, is willing to take on hard tasks, and in times of war people get emotional; I understand that. Never really, you know, spent that much time, frankly, worrying about the loud voices. I of course hear them, but they didn't affect my policy, nor did they affect -- affect how I made decisions. You know, the -- President-Elect Obama will find this, too. He'll get in the Oval Office and there will be a lot of people that are real critical and harsh, and he'll be disappointed at times by the tone of the rhetoric. And he's going to have to do what he thinks is right, Jim. And if you don't, then I don't see how you can live with yourself. I don't see how I can get back home in Texas and look in the mirror and be proud of what I see if I allowed the loud voices, the loud critics, to prevent me from doing what I thought was necessary to protect this country. Mike. Q Mr. President, thank you very much. Since your philosophy is so different from President-Elect Obama's, what concerns you the most about what he may attempt to do? THE PRESIDENT: You know, Michael, I'm not going to speculate about what he's going to do. It's going to be -- you know, he's going to get in the Oval Office, he's going to analyze each situation, and he's going to make the decisions that he think is necessary. And the other thing is, when I get out of here, I'm getting off the stage. I believe there ought to be, you know, one person in the klieg lights at a time, and I've had my time in the klieg lights. You know, I'm confident, you know, you'll catch me opining on occasion, but I wish him all the best. And people say, oh, you just -- that's just a throwaway line. No, it's not a throwaway line. The stakes are high. There is an enemy that still is out there. You know, people can maybe try to write that off as, you know, he's trying to set something up. I'm telling you there's an enemy that would like to attack America, Americans, again. There just is. That's the reality of the world. And I wish him all the very best. And of course, he's going to have his hands full with the economy. I understand. It's tough for a lot of working people out there. The people are concerned about their economic future. You know, one of the very difficult parts of the decision I made on the financial crisis was to use hardworking people's money to help prevent there to be a crisis, and in so doing, some of that money went into Wall Street firms that caused the crisis in the first place. I wasn't kidding when I said Wall Street got drunk and we got the hangover. And -- but nevertheless, President-Elect Obama will find the problems and the situations surrounding problems sometimes cause people to have to make decisions that they, you know, weren't initially comfortable with. And there was such a decision when it came to Wall Street. I mean, I had a lot of people -- when I went out to Midland that time -- say, what the heck are you doing? Those people up East caused the problem. I said, I know, but if we hadn't worked to fix the problem, your situation would be worse. And -- anyway, I really do wish him all the best. Sheryl. Q Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. President, in recent days, there's been a fair amount of discussion in legal circles about whether or not you might give preemptive pardons, pardons in advance, to officials of your administration who engaged in anything from harsh interrogation tactics to perhaps dismissing U.S. attorneys. I'd like to know, have you given any consideration to this? And are you planning on it? THE PRESIDENT: I won't be discussing pardons here at this press conference. Q Can I have a follow-up? THE PRESIDENT: Would you like to ask another question? Q Yes, I would, sir. Thank you. Four years ago -- THE PRESIDENT: That's the spirit, isn't it? (Laughter.) Q I appreciate that. THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Laughter.) Q Four years ago, you were asked if you had made any mistakes. THE PRESIDENT: Yes. Q And I'm not trying to play "gotcha," but I wonder, when you look back over the long arc of your presidency, do you think, in retrospect, that you have made any mistakes? And if so, what is the single biggest mistake that you may have made? THE PRESIDENT: Gotcha. I have often said that history will look back and determine that which could have been done better, or, you know, mistakes I made. Clearly putting a "Mission Accomplished" on a aircraft carrier was a mistake. It sent the wrong message. We were trying to say something differently, but nevertheless, it conveyed a different message. Obviously, some of my rhetoric has been a mistake. I've thought long and hard about Katrina -- you know, could I have done something differently, like land Air Force One either in New Orleans or Baton Rouge. The problem with that and -- is that law enforcement would have been pulled away from the mission. And then your questions, I suspect, would have been, how could you possibly have flown Air Force One into Baton Rouge, and police officers that were needed to expedite traffic out of New Orleans were taken off the task to look after you? I believe that running the Social Security idea right after the '04 elections was a mistake. I should have argued for immigration reform. And the reason why is, is that -- you know, one of the lessons I learned as governor of Texas, by the way, is legislative branches tend to be risk-adverse. In other words, sometimes legislatures have the tendency to ask, why should I take on a hard task when a crisis is not imminent? And the crisis was not imminent for Social Security as far as many members of Congress was concerned. As an aside, one thing I proved is that you can actually campaign on the issue and get elected. In other words, I don't believe talking about Social Security is the third rail of American politics. I, matter of fact, think that in the future, not talking about how you intend to fix Social Security is going to be the third rail of American politics. One thing about the presidency is that you can make -- only make decisions, you know, on the information at hand. You don't get to have information after you've made the decision. That's not the way it works. And you stand by your decisions, and you do your best to explain why you made the decisions you made. There have been disappointments. Abu Ghraib obviously was a huge disappointment during the presidency. Not having weapons of mass destruction was a significant disappointment. I don't know if you want to call those mistakes or not, but they were -- things didn't go according to plan, let's put it that way. Anyway, I think historians will look back and they'll be able to have a better look at mistakes after some time has passed. Along Jake's question, there is no such thing as short-term history. I don't think you can possibly get the full breadth of an administration until time has passed: Where does a President's -- did a President's decisions have the impact that he thought they would, or he thought they would, over time? Or how did this President compare to future Presidents, given a set of circumstances that may be similar or not similar? I mean, there's -- it's just impossible to do. And I'm comfortable with that. Yes, Mike. Q One of the major objectives that the incoming administration has talked frequently about is restoring America's moral standing in the world. And many of the allies of the new President -- I believe that the President-elect himself has talked about the damage that Gitmo, that harsh interrogation tactics that they consider torture, how going to war in Iraq without a U.N. mandate have damaged America's moral standing in the world. I'm wondering basically what is your reaction to that? Do you think that is that something that the next President needs to worry about? THE PRESIDENT: I strongly disagree with the assessment that our moral standing has been damaged. It may be damaged amongst some of the elite, but people still understand America stands for freedom, that America is a country that provides such great hope. You go to Africa, you ask Africans about America's generosity and compassion; go to India, and ask about, you know, America's -- their view of America. Go to China and ask. Now, no question parts of Europe have said that we shouldn't have gone to war in Iraq without a mandate, but those are a few countries. Most countries in Europe listened to what 1441 said, which is disclose, disarm or face serious consequences. Most people take those words seriously. Now, some countries didn't -- even though they might have voted for the resolution. I disagree with this assessment that, you know, people view America in a dim light. I just don't agree with that. And I understand that Gitmo has created controversies. But when it came time for those countries that were criticizing America to take some of those -- some of those detainees, they weren't willing to help out. And so, you know, I just disagree with the assessment, Mike. I'll remind -- listen, I tell people, yes, you can try to be popular. In certain quarters in Europe, you can be popular by blaming every Middle Eastern problem on Israel. Or you can be popular by joining the International Criminal Court. I guess I could have been popular by accepting Kyoto, which I felt was a flawed treaty, and proposed something different and more constructive. And in terms of the decisions that I had made to protect the homeland, I wouldn't worry about popularity. What I would worry about is the Constitution of the United States, and putting plans in place that makes it easier to find out what the enemy is thinking, because all these debates will matter not if there's another attack on the homeland. The question won't be, you know, were you critical of this plan or not; the question is going to be, why didn't you do something? Do you remember what it was like right after September the 11th around here? In press conferences and opinion pieces and in stories -- that sometimes were news stories and sometimes opinion pieces -- people were saying, how come they didn't see it, how come they didn't connect the dots? Do you remember what the environment was like in Washington? I do. When people were hauled up in front of Congress and members of Congress were asking questions about, how come you didn't know this, that, or the other? And then we start putting policy in place -- legal policy in place to connect the dots, and all of a sudden people were saying, how come you're connecting the dots? And so, Mike, I've heard all that. I've heard all that. My view is, is that most people around the world, they respect America. And some of them doesn't like me, I understand that -- some of the writers and the, you know, opiners and all that. That's fine, that's part of the deal. But I'm more concerned about the country and our -- how people view the United States. They view us as strong, compassionate people who care deeply about the universality of freedom. Roger. Q Thank you. Mr. President, you spoke a moment ago about using taxpayers' money for the TARP program. THE PRESIDENT: Yes, I did. Q The first $350 billion is out the door, it's been spent. Are you satisfied that it's been spent wisely? And for the second $350 billion that's under consideration, do you think -- are you supportive of Congress putting some restrictions on it? THE PRESIDENT: I'm supportive of the President-elect working out a plan with Congress that best suits him -- and Congress. That's what he's going to have to do. He's going to have to go up there and he's going to have to make his case as to why the $350 [billion] is necessary. And he knows that. This is nothing new. And in terms of the first $350 [billion,] I am pleased with this aspect of the expenditure, and that is that the financial markets are beginning to thaw. In the fall, I was concerned that the credit freeze would cause us to be headed toward a depression greater than the Great Depression. That's what I was told, if we didn't move. And so, therefore, we have moved aggressively. And by the way, it just wasn't with the TARP. If you think about AIG, Fannie and Freddie -- a lot of the decisions that were made in this administration are very aggressive decisions, all aiming at preventing the financial system from cratering. Q Mr. President, you spoke of the moment that the responsibility of the office would hit Barack Obama. The world is a far different place than it was when it hit you. When do you think he's going to feel the full impact? And what, if anything, have you and the other Presidents shared with him about the effects of the sometimes isolation, the so-called bubble of the office? THE PRESIDENT: Yes, that's a great question. He'll -- he will feel the effects the minute he walks in the Oval Office. At least, that's when I felt. I don't know when he's going -- he may feel it the minute he's -- gets sworn in. And the minute I got sworn in, I started thinking about the speech. (Laughter.) And so -- but he's a better speech-maker than me, so he'll be able to -- he'll be able to -- I don't know how he's going to feel. All I know is he's going to feel it. There will be a moment when he feels it. I have never felt isolated and I don't think he will. One reason he won't feel isolated is because he's got a fabulous family and he cares a lot about his family. That's evident from my discussions with him. He'll be -- he's a 45-second commute away from a great wife and two little girls that love him dearly. I believe this -- the phrase "burdens of the office" is overstated. You know, it's kind of like, why me? Oh, the burdens, you know. Why did the financial collapse have to happen on my watch? It's just -- it's pathetic, isn't it, self-pity. And I don't believe that President-Elect Obama will be full of self-pity. He will find -- you know, your -- the people that don't like you, the critics, they're pretty predictable. Sometimes the biggest disappointments will come from your so-called friends. And there will be disappointments, I promise you. He'll be disappointed. On the other hand, the job is so exciting and so profound that the disappointments will be clearly, you know, a minor irritant compared to the -- Q It was never the "loneliest office in the world" for you? THE PRESIDENT: No, not for me. We had a -- people -- we -- I had a fabulous team around me of highly dedicated, smart, capable people, and we had fun. I tell people that, you know, some days happy, some days not so happy, every day has been joyous. And people, they say, I just don't believe it to be the case. Well, it is the case. Even in the darkest moments of Iraq, you know, there was -- and every day when I was reading the reports about soldiers losing their lives, no question there was a lot of emotion, but also there was times where we could be light-hearted and support each other. And I built a team of really capable people who were there not to serve me, or there to serve the Republicans, they were there to serve the country. And President-Elect Obama will find, as he makes these tough calls and tough decisions, that he'll be supported by a lot of really good people that care -- care about the country, as well. John. Q You've talked a lot about your concerns over the rise of protectionism in the current -- THE PRESIDENT: Yes. Q -- economic environment. What do you think the future holds for that? Do you think the trend is a good one or a bad one? THE PRESIDENT: I hope the trend is bad against protectionism. A disappointment -- not a mistake, but a disappointment -- was not getting the three trade bills out of Congress on Colombia, Panama and South Korea. That was a disappointment. I actually thought we had a shot at one time, and then I was disappointed that they didn't move out of the House. And I am concerned about protectionism. In tough economic times, the temptation is to say, well, let's just throw up barriers and protect our own and not compete. That was the sentiment, by the way, that was in place during decent economic times. After all, we got CAFTA out of the Congress by one vote. And it would be a huge mistake if we become a protectionist nation. And that might be a good thing for the Bush center to do at SMU, is to remind people about the benefits of free and fair trade -- benefits for our own workers, benefits for workers overseas, and benefits when it comes to promoting development and helping lift people out of poverty, in particularly, third world countries. The best way to enhance economic growth in a third world country and to give people a chance to realize a better future is through trade. It's been proven, it's a fact. And I'm hopeful that the country doesn't slip into protectionist policy. April, yes, ma'am. Q Thank you, Mr. President. THE PRESIDENT: Yes. You were sound asleep back there, so I decided -- (laughter.) Q No, I wasn't. There was a whole clear row before me. I thought you were going to go there. But either way, thanks for the surprise. Mr. President, on New Orleans, you basically talked about a moment ago about the photo opportunity. But let's talk about what you could have done to change the situation for the city of New Orleans to be further along in reconstruction than where it is now. And also, when you came -- or began to run for the Oval Office about nine years ago or so, the James Byrd dragging death was residue on your campaign. And now at this time, 2009, we have the first black President. Could you tell us what you have seen on the issues of race, as you see it from the Oval Office? THE PRESIDENT: Sure, thanks. First of all, we did get the $121 billion, more or less, passed, and it's now being spent. Secondly, the school system is improving dramatically. Thirdly, people are beginning to move back into homes. This storm was a devastating storm, April, that required a lot of energy, a lot of focus and a lot of resources to get New Orleans up and running. And has the reconstruction been perfect? No. Have things happened fairly quickly? Absolutely. And is there more to be done? You bet there is. Q What more needs to be done? THE PRESIDENT: Well, more people need to get in their houses. More people need to have their own home there. But the systems are in place to continue the reconstruction of New Orleans. People said, well, the federal response was slow. Don't tell me the federal response was slow when there was 30,000 people pulled off roofs right after the storm passed. I remember going to see those helicopter drivers, Coast Guard drivers, to thank them for their courageous efforts to rescue people off roofs. Thirty thousand people were pulled off roofs right after the storm moved through. It's a pretty quick response. Could things have been done better? Absolutely. Absolutely. But when I hear people say, the federal response was slow, then what are they going to say to those chopper drivers, or the 30,000 that got pulled off the roofs? The other part of the -- look, I was affected by the TV after the elections -- when I saw people saying, I never thought I would see the day that a black person would be elected President, and a lot of the people had tears streaming down their cheeks when they said it. And so I am -- I am -- consider myself fortunate to have a front-row seat on what is going to be an historic moment for the country. President-Elect Obama's election does speak volumes about how far this country has come when it comes to racial relations. But there's still work to do. There's always going to be work to do to deal with people's hearts. And so I'm looking forward to it, really am. I think it's going to be -- it's going to be an amazing -- amazing moment. Michael Allen -- yes, Michael Allen. Q Mr. President -- THE PRESIDENT: Who would be you. Q Mr. President, often Presidents go -- leave here; they say they're going to decompress, and then pretty soon they're right back in their office. I wonder how quickly you think you're going to be back at it, whether it's writing your book, whether it's speaking, whether it's traveling, whether it's -- THE PRESIDENT: You know, Mike, I don't know. Probably the next day. I'm a Type A personality, you know, I just -- I just can't envision myself, you know, the big straw hat and Hawaiian shirt sitting on some beach. (Laughter.) Q No one else can, either. THE PRESIDENT: So -- (laughter.) Particularly since I quit drinking. Anyway, so I predict to you that -- first of all, I'm not sure what to expect. For the last eight years I've had a national security briefing every day but Sunday. And when you get a national security briefing, it is a reminder of the responsibilities of the job. It's just a daily reminder about what may or may not happen. The interesting thing about this job, by the way, is it's one thing to deal with the expected, what you anticipate; the real challenge is to be in a position to deal with the unexpected. And that's why those intel briefings are so important, because there is -- there's an awareness in the briefings by the analyst to try to help anticipate problems. And of course you hope they don't arise, but you better be prepared when they do. And that in itself creates a -- you know, gets your attention, when you start thinking about what could happen. And the key there, of course, is that -- to take these different analyses seriously, and then have a structure so that your team will be in a position to analyze and then lay out potential avenues for the President -- from which the President can choose. I say all that because that's -- this has been -- this notion about being briefed and thinking about this issue or that issue has been just a part of my life for eight years. People say, well, there you are in Crawford on vacation. You never escape the presidency. It travels with you everywhere you go. And there's not a moment where you don't think about being President -- unless you're riding mountain bikes as hard as you possibly can, trying to forget for the moment. And so I wake up in Crawford Tuesday morning -- I mean, Wednesday morning, and I suspect I'll make Laura coffee and go get it for her. And it's going to be a different feeling. And I can't -- it's kind of like -- I'll report back after I feel it. Last question. Ann -- since you've been there from day one. Q Thank you -- and I wanted to ask you about day one. You arrived here wanting to be a uniter, not a divider. Do you think Barack Obama can be a uniter, not a divider? Or is -- with the challenges for any President and the unpopular decisions, is it impossible for any President to be uniter, not a divider? THE PRESIDENT: I hope the tone is different for him than it has been for me. I am disappointed by the tone in Washington, D.C. I tried to do my part by not engaging in the name-calling and -- and by the way, needless name-calling. I have worked to be respectful of my opponents on different issues. There -- we did find some good common ground on a variety of issues -- No Child Left Behind, Medicare/prescription drugs, PEPFAR, in the end, the funding for troops in Iraq. Tax cuts, to a certain extent, got some bipartisan votes on them. There had been areas where we were able to work together. It's just the rhetoric got out of control at times -- Q Why? THE PRESIDENT: I don't know why. You need to ask those who -- those who used the words they used. As I say, it's not the first time it's ever happened -- as I think I answered that to Jim, there. It's happened throughout our history. And I would hope that, frankly, for the sake of the system itself, that if people disagree with President-Elect Obama, they treat him with respect. I worry about people looking at our system and saying, why would I want to go up there and work in that kind of environment? And so I wish him all the best. And no question he'll be -- there will be critics. And there should be. We all should welcome criticism on different policy -- it's the great thing about our democracy; people have a chance to express themselves. I just hope the tone is respectful. He deserves it -- and so does the country. It has been a honor to work with you. I meant what I said when I first got up here. I wish you all the very best. I wish you and your families all the best. God bless you. Bush Administration | Democracy | President Bush | Presidential Press Conference | White House Press Corps Labels: Bush Administration, Democracy, President Bush, Presidential Press Conference, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 3:00:00 PM The Secret About Presidential Press Conferences - White House Press Briefing by Tony Fratto 12/23/08 — Tuesday, December 23, 2008 —  Q Tony, obviously the President is not going to have any press conferences this year, for the remainder of the year. But in 2009 will he commit to having one before he leaves office? Can he at least -- MR. FRATTO: The truth is we get asked about this a lot, and I think I was asked about it yesterday and noted the number of interviews the President does, and he may do some additional interviews. The secret about presidential press conferences is we never make the final decision until the day of. There's always lots of speculation, I know, on the part of all of you when you see a day on the -- without public events, and we begin getting calls wondering if there's going to be a press conference. We'll make those decisions as we get into the new year, whether we see a good reason and an opportunity to do one. But those are game day decisions and so we'll have to wait until the day. President Bush | Presidential Press Conference | Press Briefing | Tony Fratto | White House Press Corps Labels: President Bush, Presidential Press Conference, Press Briefing, Tony Fratto, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 5:10:00 PM MSNBC Finds a New Host - Presidential Press Conference in Baghdad — Sunday, December 14, 2008 — Iraq | President Bush | Presidential Press Conference | White House Press Corps Labels: Iraq, President Bush, Presidential Press Conference, White House Press Corps
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 6:47:00 PM Press Conference by the President 2/28/08 (Al Qaeda and Iraq ) — Thursday, February 28, 2008 —  THE PRESIDENT: Yes, Jonathan.Q Mr. President, do you believe if we have the kind of rapid pull-out from Iraq that Democrats are talking about, that we would be at greater risk of a terrorist attack here at home? And when Senator Obama was asked a similar question, he said, "If al Qaeda is forming a base in Iraq, then we will have to act in a way that secures the American homeland and our interests abroad." So I'm wondering if -- THE PRESIDENT: That's an interesting comment. If al Qaeda is securing a al Qaeda base -- yes, well, that's exactly what they've been trying to do for the past four years. That's their stated intention, was to create enough chaos and disorder to establish a base from which to either launch attacks or spread a caliphate. And the intent of the surge was to send more Marines into the area that -- where they had proclaimed their desire to set up a base. That was Anbar province. And so, yes, that's one of the challenges we face, is denying al Qaeda a safe haven anywhere. And their intentions -- that's what they said, that they would like to have a base or safe haven in Anbar province. Yes, Bill. Q But -- THE PRESIDENT: No, next turn. Q But the question about -- THE PRESIDENT: Nice try. (Laughter.) Q Mr. President -- THE PRESIDENT: You obviously haven't been here long. Al Qaeda | Democratic Candidates | Iraq | President Bush | Presidential Press Conference | White House Press Corps Labels: Al Qaeda, Democratic Candidates, Iraq, President Bush, Presidential Press Conference, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 8:34:00 PM Press Conference by the President 10/17/07 (Iran and Russia) — Wednesday, October 17, 2007 —  Q Good morning, Mr. President, thank you. I don't know if you saw the picture on the front page of one of the papers this morning of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Vladimir Putin. THE PRESIDENT: I did. Q It looked like they were getting along pretty well. And they are among -- THE PRESIDENT: Surprised they weren't kind of fighting each other on the front page of the paper? No, man, come on. Q It looked like they were enjoying each other's company. And I'm wondering, since they were leaders of five Caspian Sea region nations that have now declared each country will not be used as a base to attack the other, A, what do you make of their growing relationship? B, does it complicate what the United States can do in the region? And C, would you characterize that arrangement as some sort of Caspian Sea Truman Doctrine or something like that? THE PRESIDENT: You know, I -- I think it's hard to judge how their conversations went from a picture. Generally leaders don't like to be photographed scowling at each other or making bad gestures at each other. So I'm not surprised that there was a nice picture of them walking along. I try to make sure that when I'm with foreign leaders, there's a pretty picture of the two of us walking down the colonnades, or something like that, to send a good message. Q Are you saying it's not so warm? THE PRESIDENT: Well, I don't know yet. What I'm about to tell you is, is that I'm looking forward to getting President Putin's readout from the meeting. I think one of the -- the thing I'm interested in is whether or not he continues to harbor the same concerns that I do. And I say "continues" because when we were in Australia, he reconfirmed to me that it is -- he recognized it's not in the world's interest for Iran to have the capacity to make a nuclear weapon. And they have been very supportive in the United Nations. And we're working with them on a potential third resolution. So that's where my concerns -- I don't worry about the pictures. I understand why they meet. I am -- will continue to work with Russia, as well as other nations, to keep a focused effort on sending Iran a message that you will remain isolated if you continue your nuclear weapons ambitions. Q But this declaration doesn't speak to that, Mr. President. This declaration doesn't suggest isolation for Iran. Just the opposite, that Russia and Iran are going to do business. THE PRESIDENT: Well, we'll find out, see. You're trying to get me to interpret the meeting based upon a news story or a picture. I'd rather spend some time with Vladimir Putin finding out exactly what went on. Thank you. Q Let's stay with the nuclear -- here. When North Korea tested a nuclear device, you said that any proliferation would be a grave threat to the U.S., and North Korea would be responsible for the consequences. Are you denying that North Korea has any role in the suspected nuclear -- THE PRESIDENT: See, you're trying to pull a Gregory. Q Yes, I am. Ahmadinejad | Iran | North Korea | Nuclear Arms | President Bush Labels: Ahmadinejad, Iran, North Korea, Nuclear Arms, President Bush, Presidential Press Conference, Putin, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 5:10:00 PM Press Conference by the President 9/20/07 (S-CHIP Veto) — Thursday, September 20, 2007 — Q Quick follow, if I may, Mr. President? THE PRESIDENT: No, you may not. Q Mr. President, back to your grade point average on holding the line on taxes -- THE PRESIDENT: Whew, I thought you were going to talk about the actual grade point average. (Laughter.) I remind people that, like when I'm with Condi I say, she's the Ph.D. and I'm the C-student, and just look at who's the President and who's the advisor. (Laughter.) But go ahead. Q If there is a tax increase on cigarettes to fund the S-CHIP program, is that a tax increase you oppose? THE PRESIDENT: It does. We don't need to raise taxes. What I want is the Congress to be focused on making sure poor children get the health insurance they were promised. Instead, Congress has made a decision to expand the eligibility up to $80,000. That's not the intent of the program. The program was find poor children and help them with health insurance. Their vision is, expand the eligibility so that people making up to $80,000 will be eligible for this program. I believe this is a step toward federalization of health care. I know that their proposal is beyond the scope of the program, and that's why I'm going to veto the bill. Labels: President Bush, Presidential Press Conference, S-CHIP, Vetoes, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 8:34:00 PM
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