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 The Transcript Should Include Me Laughing - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 11/10/09 — Wednesday, November 11, 2009 —  Q The stories about Afghan troop numbers -- does the President find it troubling that this kind of information, even if it's not final, is leaking out? Does it bother him, and does it make him concerned? And is he done with his decision?MR. GIBBS: I think you may have summed up my answer in your question. I will say this -- I will tell you what General Jones said and I think we said to a few of you last night: The President will have an opportunity to discuss four options with his national security team tomorrow. Anybody that tells you that the President has made a decision or -- what was the artfully used term last night, "tentatively agreed to" -- doesn't have, in all honesty, the slightest idea what they're talking about. The President has yet to make a decision. I would counsel you all to -- I got asked on Saturday about a story of approving 34,000 troops, only to be asked yesterday about a story of approving nearly 40,000 troops -- this all two weeks after being asked about whether or not we were coalescing around an entirely different option. I don't know that it's annoying as much as it is generally amusing to watch somebody or some group of people decide they know what only the President knows. You know, it keeps me busy and it's in some ways fun to watch two reports that contradict each other be reported virtually simultaneously. Q Does it bother him, though? Does it bother him? MR. GIBBS: He hasn't let me know that. Q -- presented him with the four options -- is that the four options by General McChrystal or -- MR. GIBBS: The four options that his national security team, including the Pentagon and General McChrystal, that the President will discuss with the team tomorrow. Q Can you describe those just real briefly, or -- MR. GIBBS: (Laughter.) See my previous answer. And please note that the transcript should include me laughing. No, I'm not getting -- I appreciate the opportunity to get into -- Q Wanted to give you every opportunity. MR. GIBBS: You know, and I -- Bloomberg is always fair like that. Q Well, just to follow up on that, in all seriousness, from your perspective, so you want us to know that he's considering four options, but don't want us to know what they are? What's the White House -- MR. GIBBS: With all due respect, you guys reported last night with some degree of certainty that the decision had already been made. Am I sensing from your follow-up question that you don't think the story that you wrote last night on the AP wire was accurate? Q I have every reason to think it is. I'm trying to -- MR. GIBBS: Maybe we should ask you questions. (Laughter.) Q I'm trying to figure out what the White House thinking is about saying there's four options -- MR. GIBBS: -- I said yesterday, I'll say what I said last night after, with some certainty, AP and CBS reported a decision had been made, and I'll tell it to you now: The President hasn’t made a decision. Now, I don't expect that will change the AP wire; it didn’t this morning. Q I understand your point. I'm trying to move on, which is why -- MR. GIBBS: I am -- Q I have no personal animus with you -- MR. GIBBS: I don't either. You have to understand my somewhat -- my surprise that you'd ask a follow-up based on what you reported. Q I'm following up on your specific point of telling us tomorrow in this council meeting they'll discuss four options. I'm asking, why are you telling us that fact and not others? MR. GIBBS: Because, honestly, Ben, we've been -- I think we've been very transparent throughout this process. We've let you all know when these meetings are; we've let you know who's in these meetings; we've put out pictures of these meetings. The President is doing this in a very purposeful and deliberate way to get the best decision. And I promise you that when he makes that decision we'll let you know. And as I've said before, the President will take the time to explain that decision and its reasoning to the American people. Q That's still weeks away? You would still say weeks? Weeks or -- Q Any more decision about how he would do that? MR. GIBBS: No, not yet. Afghanistan | Air Force One | Haha | Military | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Afghanistan, Air Force One, Haha, Military, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 8:14:00 PM  A Boring Consistency To Our Rhetoric - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 8/17/09 — Tuesday, August 18, 2009 —  Q Public option -- is it dead or not?MR. GIBBS: I got to tell you, this is one of the more curious things I've ever seen in my life. I was on a Sunday show, I said the same thing about a public option that I've said for I don't know how many weeks. The Secretary reiterated what the President said the day before, and you'd think there was some new policy. Q The language appeared to be -- MR. GIBBS: The language "appeared" to be? Q Well, the language on Saturday -- the President made -- saying that the public option was only a sliver, and whether it's in it or it isn't in it seems to move the ball a little bit from where you guys were. No? MR. GIBBS: No. I think you can go back and find the President saying -- look, the President has said that's his preference, but the President has also said I don't know how many times if the goals are choice and competition, right, the reason you have a public option is because you have an insurance market that doesn't have choice or competition. If somebody is trying to seek private insurance on -- private health insurance on a private market and only has -- because this happens in some areas or in some states where there's one insurance company that does business in that region, that that is -- that doesn't ensure the type of affordability and quality that you'd want to see in a health insurance system. So you have some competition that provides some choice, so that if a family of four might have different insurance needs than a single person or a couple that's married with no children or what have you. The goals are choice and competition. His preference is a public option. If there are other ideas, he's happy to look at them. Because I think his -- I think this is true not only for the issue of health care, but for virtually every other issue that he'll ever deal with in public life is he has goals about what he wants to accomplish and he's not necessarily wedded to one -- only one way of getting there. I think he's said that a hundred times. Q Just to be completely clear, has anything changed on the public option? MR. GIBBS: No. I challenge you guys all to go back and see what we've said about this over the course of many, many, many, many months, and you'll find a boring consistency to our rhetoric. Q The rhetoric, as you say, might be consistent, but the movement on the ground, so to speak, toward legislation hasn't been. Is there any recognition now that a public option is looking less likely to be part of a final deal? MR. GIBBS: Let me make sure I understand your question, because I want to know if it's -- is this predicated on legislative developments since Congress has been out of session, or are we trying to match the stampede of a series of stories to if not the consistent language that we've all been saying to some now legislative vote? Q It's just looking more and more likely that a public option is not going to be part of the final bill. I'm wondering if the White House is -- MR. GIBBS: I do think -- can I just -- I want to point out the -- how do I phrase this -- massive irony that I don't know that I saw any of your stories denote the fact that this might be -- that you're surmising now this was a political reality rather than -- Q That's what we're asking. MR. GIBBS: I understand, but did you think from the phrasing of Julianna's question that we might be coming to justify a series of stampeding stories in one direction based on something different than what we've always said? Q But you guys have -- you haven't exactly come out publicly since Sebelius' statement yesterday, come in front of the cameras to speak to us, to downplay -- MR. GIBBS: Because nothing has changed. Q But you haven't downplayed the remarks and the coverage either. MR. GIBBS: No, no, I think many people talked to you all yesterday. I think people sent e-mails. David Axelrod called people. Q (Inaudible.) MR. GIBBS: I didn't get an e-mail from you. Nothing has changed. I mean, we can go out and say nothing has changed, but that seems sort of silly since nothing has changed. Look, in terms of the political realities, obviously there's a public plan -- or public option in the House bill. There is a public option in the HELP bill. I don't know what the Senate Finance Committee will come out with. Air Force One | Health Care | Legislation | Obama Administration | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Health Care, Legislation, Obama Administration, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 9:20:00 AM An Agreement Before The 15th Of September - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 8/15/09  Q What's the message we're going to hear from your surrogates on the morning shows tomorrow?MR. GIBBS: Well, I think I'm one of them so -- Q Oh, really? I didn't even look at the list. MR. GIBBS: I think we'll spend most of our time talking about health care and the economy. Q It was interesting, both Valerie and Podesta have made a comment recently in which they said they thought that the ultimate product was going to -- I believe this is what they said -- it was going to end up being more centrist than to the left in terms of the legislation that would come out. I might be misinterpreting that, but the implication was that it was going to appeal to the moderate -- the more middle of America position on health care. MR. GIBBS: I haven't seen the comments, I don't know what John or Valerie said. Look, I think you're going to get a health care plan that -- well, as the President said today, you start with about 80 percent of agreement on what's going on in Congress. Obviously the plan that went through Energy and Commerce on the House side did so after quite a bit of negotiating and bargaining with Blue Dog Democrats on Capitol Hill, and we're -- I know the President spent some time with Senator Baucus yesterday talking about seeing if the Finance Committee can also get an agreement before the 15th of September. Air Force One | Health Care | Legislation | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Health Care, Legislation, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 8:56:00 AM Going From Sub-Message To Sub-Message To Sub-Message - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 8/11/09 — Wednesday, August 12, 2009 — Q Robert, is it safe to say that the level of opposition, especially conservative opposition that has hardened to the health care reform, that took the administration by surprise?MR. GIBBS: Based on? Q Based on polls showing diminishing public support and also -- among the conservative -- the level of conservative animosity towards the reform. Has that taken the -- did that take the administration by surprise? Is that -- MR. GIBBS: That conservatives oppose health care reform is about as surprising as the sun having come up today in the east. Q I mean the sort of virulence of it, the -- MR. GIBBS: Well, I don't -- just because somebody can yell at a health care town hall meeting I think is indicative only of one's personal lung capacity. Q Is there any danger of diluting the message? There are so many different facets to this. You're talking today, as you said, about preexisting conditions. Also you've talked about -- the President has talked about health care in the context of economic reform. Going from sub-message to sub-message to sub-message, is there a danger that none of them are sticking? MR. GIBBS: No, I -- look, I think if you're sitting at home, you're concerned that your health care bill is going up because it's gone up every year. It's doubled in the past nine years. We're in the midst of a tremendous economic downturn, which makes paying for the increasing cost of health care even harder. And if you lose your job or your employer has to cut your health care and you find yourself on a private market, as millions of people do every day, you might get discriminated against because somebody in an insurance company decides you have a preexisting condition. I don't think that's confusing; I think that's the way millions of Americans live every day. I think that's what people are focused on in this debate. I don't think that people are -- no offense, but you guys cover a lot of process and you cover a lot of -- you cover noise and heat and light, but I think what people in America want to know is how is this reform going to help them or how is it going to affect them. I think that's what the President wants to do today, is discuss those particulars with the American people. I think that's what they're concerned about. Q Can you have light without heat? MR. GIBBS: Absolutely. Q I guess my point being, as you said, people want to know how this is going to help them, but each time the President goes out that message is substantially different to some people, who listen sort of occasionally. MR. GIBBS: I don't think the message is -- maybe I just -- maybe I missed it. I don't think the message is substantially different. I don't -- we've been talking about health care the same way for almost two-and-a-half years. We've been talking about the fact that it's not just about increasing coverage, it's cutting costs. It's about making sure that insurance works for people. I don't think we've changed messages at all. Air Force One |Health Care | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | Town Hall Meetings | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Health Care, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 6:57:00 AM Ferociousness And The Contention - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Bill Burton 8/10/09 — Monday, August 10, 2009 —  Q What did the President think of Pelosi and Hoyer's comment in the op/ed about the disruptions being un-American?MR. BURTON: Well, I think there's actually a pretty long tradition of people shouting at politicians in America. The President thinks that if people want to come and have a spirited debate about health care, a real vigorous conversation about it, that's a part of the American tradition and he encourages that, because people do have questions and concerns about -- Q Does he encourage the disruptions? MR. BURTON: Well, one second. And so if people want to come and have their concerns and their questions answered, the President thinks that's important. Now, if you just want to come to a town hall so that you can disrupt and so that you can scream over another person, he doesn’t think that that's productive. And as a country, we've been able to make progress when people actually talk out what our problems are, not try to shout each other down. So he thinks that we're going to be able to have a constructive conversation tomorrow and he'll continue to do that at the town hall later in the week and throughout this effort. Q The advance people heard nothing about what the audience is likely to be tomorrow, no expectation about whether there is going to be any voices raised? MR. BURTON: Well, at all these events you get a different kind of crowd, and certainly there have been events with the President where some people are livelier than at others. So the President is looking forward to going to New Hampshire tomorrow. Q What is the President's reaction been to the town halls in the last week? I mean, is he surprised by the sort of ferociousness and the contention? Is he -- what's his -- MR. BURTON: Well, there's obviously a lot of passion on one side of this, and that's why people are showing up and screaming. And again he doesn't think that that's constructive. But, you know, there's passion on the other side, too -- the people who want health care reform and who think that it's wrong that health insurance companies can stop you from getting coverage just because you have a preexisting condition, or drop you from coverage just because you get sick. So the President's reaction has been that there's more questions to be asked, but there's -- the American people are foursquare behind getting some kind of health care reform so that we can change the way that it's delivered in this country, and he's going to continue to work towards that effort. Q Does he think people are being put up to it? MR. BURTON: Well, I think less important than the motivations or the organizations or who's putting it together is that there's a lot of energy out there on this issue, on either side. And the President views his role as getting health care reform done for the American people and in order to do that, that means going out there and being prepared to have a robust and vigorous discussion. Air Force One | Bill Burton | Health Care | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Town Hall Meetings | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Bill Burton, Health Care, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Town Hall Meetings, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 7:25:00 PM Gibbs Callibrates On Ahmadinejad - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 8/5/09 — Thursday, August 06, 2009 — Q Switching topics slightly and then we might go back to North Korea. Do you have any reaction to the swearing-in of President Ahmadinejad in Iran today?MR. GIBBS: Well, let me correct a little bit of what I said yesterday. I denoted that Mr. Ahmadinejad was the elected leader of Iran. I would say it's not for me to pass judgment on. He's been inaugurated, that's a fact. Whether any election was fair, obviously the Iranian people still have questions about that and we'll let them decide that. But I would simply say he's been inaugurated and we know that is simply a fact. Q Do you recognize him as the leader, elected fairly or not? MR. GIBBS: It's not for -- it's not for me or for us to denote his legitimacy, except to acknowledge the fact. Q Does the White House believe the election was fair? MR. GIBBS: That's not for us to pass judgment on. I think that's for the Iranian people to decide, and obviously there are many that still have a lot of questions. Ahmadinejad | Air Force One | Iran | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Ahmadinejad, Air Force One, Iran, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 3:06:00 PM 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 There's No Doubt - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 7/14/09 — Tuesday, July 14, 2009 — Q Robert, can you describe what the President's mood is coming to Michigan, given the unemployment numbers here and the, sort of, mood?MR. GIBBS: Look, obviously this is -- I think as he said this afternoon in the Oval -- or this morning in the Oval Office, obviously you've got a state that the unemployment rate is the greatest in the nation and obviously is a state that has dealt with economic transformation, the loss of auto and manufacturing jobs well before the recession hit. So obviously this is probably as hard-hit an area as there is in the entire country. I think one of the things that is important about today's stop is one aspect of putting people back to work and laying that long-term foundation for economic growth is increasing the number of people that we have in this country that get a post-high school education, that get the job training and placement help necessary for the jobs of the future. And that's the program -- the new initiative that the President will highlight today that he talked originally about in the joint session of Congress. But obviously, look, there are lots and lots of people that are hurting all throughout Michigan and the Midwest as a result, again, of not just the downturn in the economy but things that they've struggled with economically for quite some time. Q Do you feel like you guys are moving money fast enough into Michigan -- stimulus money fast enough into Michigan? MR. GIBBS: The recovery plan is ahead of the pace that was originally set -- Q (Inaudible.) MR. GIBBS: Well, in Michigan and throughout the country. I think Michigan is one of the -- one of the top 10 state recipients for money. Look, I think you can talk to people in Michigan that have watched recovery money go in. There's no doubt that there are fewer teachers that have been laid off because of money that has come in to help education funding. There's no doubt that people have been hired because road construction projects are starting here and in the Detroit area and throughout the state that have put people back to work. Obviously, we've got a lot of work to do in the Midwest and in Michigan and throughout the country. Money has moved quickly. It has moved ahead of pace. And it has prevented an even sharper economic downturn from occurring. Q Do you know how many jobs have been created so far in Michigan? MR. GIBBS: I don't have an exact Michigan figure, no. Air Force One | Economy | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | Stimulus Package | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Economy, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, Stimulus Package, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 10:53:00 PM The True Measure Of Things - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 7/8/09 — Thursday, July 09, 2009 — MR. GIBBS: I came back during the only part of the flight that was bumpy. (Laughter.)Q Yes, that's what we said right before you came back here. One more G8 question, also on numbers. Can you say whether the U.S. is decided or is going to support limiting global warming to two degrees Celsius? MR. GIBBS: Well, look, I think the biggest -- the biggest thing that surrounds all of this as it relates to global warming and climate change are the big steps that the House took only a week or so ago to put our country strongly on record as taking bold action against forces that are changing the temperature and the environment of our planet. Obviously the President has talked about a great deal about this during the campaign. There are important -- there's important progress that we can make as a part of this in creating a market for clean energy jobs, incentivizing those jobs, and using that as part of the foundation for long-term economic growth rather than having what the President has talked about, the sort of boom and bust cycles of the economy or have the economy as it has been -- have the growth of the economy largely predicated on personal consumption. So I think we've taken a strong step forward. Q In the G8 perspective -- I understand that that's Obama's position, but what about the negotiating parts here at the G8? What is the administration's position going to be on that two degrees Celsius goal? MR. GIBBS: Let me get a little bit better guidance on that, except, again, I would say that I think our biggest contribution to this is the steps that were taken by the House to put us strongly on record on this. Q Does the President view the European proposal as politically plausible in this country? MR. GIBBS: Well, I think we've all seen that in -- that this is not the easiest thing to do. I think part of that is because you've seen opponents of taking strong action on global warming take a lot of license with the impacts of any proposal. I think the legislation that came out of -- it's always -- I'm always amused to find that the CBO is the credible agency, if you will, of record -- until they're not. And in the case of the climate change legislation, remember the CBO came out and said that the cost for a family in 2020 would be approximately $170. Now, only a few days before, when the CBO was talking about health care, it seemed like many people thought the CBO was written on a stone tablet -- until they got this report and many questioned the CBO. So I think in many ways, some of the difficulty in this is getting around what you hear from opponents that think we don't need to take any action, that we don't need to change anything that we're doing, or that we don't need to lay that long-term foundation for clean energy jobs. But I think -- the President has talked about this for several years, and we've made I think some bold steps in Congress to get something to the President's desk this year. Q Robert, let me go at that a little bit differently. On climate change, how would the President define success at this G8? I understand your position about what the House has done and trying to have momentum. But how do you define success? MR. GIBBS: Well, look, I think in many ways success for us is going to be getting something through Congress and to his desk that puts in place a system, a market-based system that lessens the amount of greenhouses gases in the air. Look, that's going to be the true measure of things. Air Force One | Congressional Budget Office | G8 | Global Warming | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Congressional Budget Office, G8, Global Warming, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 11:56:00 PM Heartened By The Enthusiasm Of Young People In Iran - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 6/15/09 — Monday, June 15, 2009 —  MR. GIBBS: How are you guys?Q How are you? MR. GIBBS: Good. Fire away. Q Does the President think the Iranian election was run fairly and that the announced results are accurate? MR. GIBBS: Well, I don't have a lot to add to what -- the statement that we put out this weekend and what Vice President Biden said yesterday. Obviously we continue to have concern about what we've seen. Obviously the Iranians are looking into this, as well. We continue to be heartened by the enthusiasm of young people in Iran. But I think what's important is the concerns that we have about their nuclear weapons program, and the concern we have about their support for terror isn’t any different than it was on Friday. Q Does the margin of victory announced for Ahmadinejad seem reasonable or plausible to the White House? MR. GIBBS: I think there are a number of factors that give us some concern about what we've seen. Air Force One | Democracy | Elections | Iran | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Democracy, Elections, Iran, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 2:13:00 PM Right to Remain Silent - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Bill Burton 6/11/09 — Thursday, June 11, 2009 —  Q Bill, did you and Gibbs clarify reading Miranda rights to combatants in Iraq and Afghanistan?MR. BURTON: I'm going to direct you over to the Department of Justice on that. They put out a statement on that yesterday, and I think that there's been some mischaracterization of what's happening over there. Air Force One | Bill Burton | Department of Justice | Interrogation | Press Gaggle | War on Terror | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Bill Burton, Department of Justice, Interrogation, Press Gaggle, War on Terror, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 9:26:00 PM Just Like Bush And Totally Opposite Of Bush - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 5/14/09 — Friday, May 15, 2009 —  Q Robert, on the photos, do you know if the administration has communicated to the court yet its decision to retract what it had said previously? And the ACLU and others have been really harsh, calling the administration just as bad as the Bush administration now when it comes to secrecy. Does his decision on this reflect a fundamental kind of position that you think he takes or is going to take in his tenure on secrecy when it comes to national security?MR. GIBBS: Well, let me -- a couple comments. Q Thought you might. MR. GIBBS: One, I suppose, since you all keep asking me about Dick Cheney and how we're so different than George Bush in keeping the American people safe, it's a little hard to answer a question about why somebody thinks we're just like George Bush. Q On this issue, they're saying. I mean, you know, they're saying on the issue of secrecy. MR. GIBBS: Dick Cheney is not talking about global warming, right? I mean, we can't be either -- we can't be just like Bush and totally opposite of Bush all in the same issue. So I'll let people decide what part of the spectrum they think we land on. I think there are a lot of analogies out there that people probably haven't thought well through before they opened their mouths. The second thing is, look, I think it is very -- I don't think it makes any sense to look at these things -- I think each of these things has to be looked at individually, right? Like let's take, for instance -- because all the stories today include this analogy to Abu Ghraib. Let's understand that Abu Ghraib -- the existence of the photos was the first that people understood of the notion of detainee abuse. That's what led to the investigation. In this case, these photos are part of investigations that have been completed. The existence of these photos are not how we know about the abuse; it's because they've been investigated. So I think we're all trying to draw parallels that might not necessarily work. I think the President is going to take -- look at the individual facts on a case-by-case basis and make the determination that he best believes protects our national security. Q And I think most people would understand the kind of case-by-case approach. On the other hand, there are people who would probably say they voted for this President because they understood him to have a fundamentally different belief when it comes to these kinds of issues, and a fundamentally more open approach to issues like secrecy -- they voted for him because they didn't like George Bush's approach to kind of keeping everything secret and not turning -- and not being transparent. And that's what you guys promised, is a fundamentally different approach. MR. GIBBS: And I'm pushing back on -- because now you seem to -- you've morphed from this being the ACLU's question and -- Q I'm just -- I'm playing devil's advocate here, Robert. I'm just -- MR. GIBBS: I'll be transparent and make this The Washington Post's argument. I think if you have any doubt about where we stand on the issues of detainee abuse, enhanced interrogation techniques and torture, I'd be happy to provide you the copy of the executive order that once and for all ends their use as part of this administration. I think if anybody has any doubt about how we fundamentally differ from the past administration on this issue, I'd suggest they take a look at that. And again, I just want to push back on this whole premise that somehow -- these cases are on the Internet. These cases have been investigated. These cases -- we've seen punishment handed down for people that are involved in these cases. The notion that these photos add anything other -- anything to the record about these cases other than some matter-of-fact sensationalism -- that's why the President believes that the detainee abuse investigations are important and it can't be overlooked and it shouldn't be overlooked. But materially, these photos don't add anything to it. Air Force One | Bush Administration | Dick Cheney | Obama Administration | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Bush Administration, Dick Cheney, Obama Administration, Photos, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 4:43:00 PM Thrilled To Have Him - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 4/29/09 — Wednesday, April 29, 2009 —  Q Robert, it's fairly unusual for a sitting President to basically endorse a candidate in a party primary. Can we expect President Obama to be doing more of the same in the next election cycle?MR. GIBBS: I don't think it's at all irregular for a President to endorse an incumbent member of his own party even if it's a new member. I think you can go back and find a lot of examples of that. The President is, as I said and he said yesterday, happy to have Senator Specter as a member of the Democratic Party, thrilled to have him, support him fully. He's made a decision of how to best represent the people he represents in Pennsylvania and we're happy that he did so. Q Robert, to follow up on Ed's question, it was -- I think, seven minutes lapsed before the President was on the phone with Senator Specter saying he would support him in the primary -- MR. GIBBS: Seven minutes after he called him, yes. Q Well, could you on that point say when did he have an inkling before that -- he thought it through? How did he arrive at the decision to offer that support, and did he consider supporting maybe a candidate who had been backed by the unions? MR. GIBBS: No, he supported a -- he supported the, albeit new, member -- incumbent member of his party. There wasn’t any meeting about it. The President offered his support to Senator Specter and it's a commitment he'll keep. Q Did he decide in that seven-minute span? I think he said no. MR. GIBBS: My sense is it probably took him less than about seven seconds, so he might have had some extra time to think about other stuff. Air Force One | Democrats | Elections | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Democrats, Elections, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 3:10:00 PM The Non-Clarity of Yesterday - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 4/22/09 — Wednesday, April 22, 2009 —  Q Any clarity from yesterday on the President's position on torture memos, and any reaction to Dennis Blair's memo that appeared in papers today?MR. GIBBS: Well, on the first question, what exactly -- what clarity are you looking for? Q We're looking -- you said you were going to talk to -- get back to us with clarity on the President's remarks. MR. GIBBS: Well, I think what -- maybe what I wasn’t clear about yesterday and -- because what was said yesterday was exactly what the President has said for not just the past week, as we've dealt with these OLC memos, but for the past many months. Let's just go through the whole sort of decision in general. The President, at the beginning of his administration, banned the use of enhanced interrogation techniques because he believed they were -- they opposed our values and, on balance, they made the country less safe. As part of an ongoing legal proceeding, the President released these memos because there was no legal justification for continuing to keep them classified; that a lot of the information that was contained in the memos, that the types of techniques were in the public domain. So that is part of the backdrop of where we are. The President also believes that the memos and their release should be a moment for us to reflect, but not a moment for retribution. The President, as he said yesterday, has a lot on his plate and he believes that our focus looking forward should be on the crises that we have in the bank industry, in unemployment, the financial sector, and as he and the Attorney General have said, that while no one is above the law, those that worked within the four corners of the legal advice they were given, and those that acted in good faith based on the advice they were provided should not be subject to interrogation. That's what the President said -- that's what the President has said all along. Q Should not be subject to what? MR. GIBBS: Should not be subject to prosecution. Q The President said yesterday that he wanted to ensure that if there was any kind of investigation, politics were not part of the equation. Given that, would he be supportive at some point appointing a special prosecutor to look into these Bush-era officials? MR. GIBBS: Well, look, I think this goes into the -- in some ways, the non-clarity of yesterday. Let me use an example. If you go in the back of the plane, Air Force One, and spray-paint the walls and smoke in the bathroom, the President isn’t going to determine whether you broke the law; a legal official is going to determine whether you broke the law. That's the determination that will be made in any instance whereby anybody knowingly breaks the law. Q But due to the fact that his AG, Eric Holder, is a political appointee, would it not be less political to have a prosecutor to look into these issues? MR. GIBBS: I think that the lawyers that are involved are plenty capable of determining whether any law has been broken. I want to stress that that determination is not going to be made by the President, or the Vice President, or anybody that works in the White House, because that's why many, many, many, many moons ago we created a Department of Justice. Q To switch gears, can you tell us a little bit more about this planned summit with Zardari and Karzai? What does the President hope to achieve with this, what I understand is going to be a three-way? MR. GIBBS: Yes, it will be a trilateral meeting in early May. Look, obviously, without getting into a lot of the technical details, these are -- this is part of the ongoing new policy and process that was put into place at the conclusion of the review of where we are in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Understanding that this is a very important and very dangerous part of the world, the President wants to be personally involved, as he has been throughout his administration, in seeking to find solutions to the problems that are in this region and to protect the United States. Q He said before that he doesn’t -- that they're not going to have a blank check. Is that something he's going to communicate to them again when he meets them? MR. GIBBS: Absolutely. And I don't -- the President will reiterate his hopes and his belief of the opportunities, but also the responsibilities that each leader has. Q There are lots and lots of news reports today saying that what the President did yesterday was open the door, change his policy, make a surprising announcement. Are all of those stories just flat wrong? MR. GIBBS: Yes. And let me -- again, I'll use the example that I used with Jonathan to you -- I think you were getting a pen or something. If you spray-paint the back of this plane, if you tear up one of the seats, even though it's Air Force One, the President doesn’t make a determination as to who broke the law. That's a legal official. The notion that the President is open to anything is -- I think misses the point. If somebody knowingly broke the law, that's a determination that will be ultimately made by a legal official, not by the President of the United States, or not by anybody else. Air Force One | Interrogation | Obama Administration | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | War on Terror | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Interrogation, Obama Administration, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, War on Terror, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 7:34:00 PM Around Here - Al Faw Palace Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 4/7/09 — Wednesday, April 08, 2009 — MR. GIBBS: There are updates on the schedule even as we speak, so I’ll come back out and do that again. Q Okay. Q I’m sorry, I couldn’t hear that part. MR. GIBBS: There are updates to the schedule, and I’ll come out there -- Q So he may have a face-to-face with Talabani? MR. GIBBS: Yes, yes. Q But still here? Everything here? MR. GIBBS: Somewhere in Camp Victory, yes. Q He’s not going to the Green Zone, right? MR. GIBBS: Right. It will be somewhere -- I don't -- Q Around here. MR. GIBBS: It's not likely to be in that office, but it will be nearby. International Relations | Iraq | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: International Relations, Iraq, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 12:20:00 AM Trying To Test Him - Prague Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 4/5/09 — Tuesday, April 07, 2009 —  Q I didn’t read this, but does it include whether different phases, different stages of the missile worked and others failed?MR. GIBBS: It says just, "Stage one of the missile fell into the Sea of Japan, the remaining stages, along with the payload itself, landed in the Pacific Ocean." Q So nothing got into space? MR. GIBBS: "No object entered orbit and no debris fell on Japan." Q But it got over Japan and into the Pacific. MR. GIBBS: Yes. Q Robert, the broader timing of this, though, even if you don’t think it was necessarily timed for the speech, the broader timing of it is it comes very early in your administration. Do you think the North Koreans are trying to test him? And trying to get his attention? MR. GIBBS: Well, I think that -- I’m trying to be careful -- I think that the North Koreans have disregarded their responsibilities and international resolutions for many, many years now, going back at least to the last two presidencies. So I don’t think this has anything to do with President Obama; I think it has to do with the disregard of the North Koreans, the steps backwards that they are continuing to take and that the President supports the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Q Will you have any more six-party talks now that this has happened, in good faith? MR. GIBBS: Let me get a better answer on that. North Korea | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: North Korea, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 11:48:00 AM The Gravest Security Danger - Prague Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 4/5/09  Q So the President has not yet been told whether this was in fact a satellite launch, or a missile test, or something in between?MR. GIBBS: I won't get into that during this briefing. I will say this: The President has -- the launch today was not a surprise by any means. The President has been involved in several meetings about this situation over the course of the past three to four weeks. So this was something that had long been planned for. And had at any moment we determined that this launched posed a threat to the United States of America, we would have taken whatever steps were necessary to ensure the safety and security of the American people. Q At any time were America's defenses placed on alert? MR. GIBBS: I think it is safe to say that defenses were monitoring the situation. Q Has the President reached out yet to -- directly to any allies -- Japan or South Korea? MR. GIBBS: The President hasn't spoken yet with Aso or with Lee. Not yet. Q So just to back up, he was woken up? MR. GIBBS: Yes. Q Who woke him up? MR. GIBBS: I did. Q What was his first reaction? MR. GIBBS: Again, it wasn't completely unexpected. He asked me for a rundown of the situation. Obviously at that point there wasn't a ton of detail, and not long after we went back and gave him more up-to-date information about what to -- what defense came back with. Q Did he stay up then to -- get on the phone from that point on? MR. GIBBS: He was up at that point, yes. Q Obviously this makes a big impact on the speech, it ties into the speech, but it overshadows it in some ways. What is he going to say -- MR. GIBBS: I don't think -- I don't think it overshadows it, because I don't think -- I think it makes even more urgent, as the President said, the agenda and the policies that he'll lay out today: The spread of this technology, the spread of weapons of mass destruction, and the threat of -- the threat that those weapons pose are the most -- are the gravest security danger our country faces. And I think what the President will outline today is a robust agenda to deal with the problems and the security threats that they pose. North Korea | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: North Korea, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 9:35:00 AM Shirking Responsibility - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 4/3/09 — Saturday, April 04, 2009 —  Q Does the President think -- General – excuse me, Secretary Gates said something about this over the weekend -- does the President think that leaders of NATO countries need to do more to convince their publics to contribute more troops? And how will he be communicating that?MR. GIBBS: Well, I think you’ll hear some of this, quite frankly, in his speech today in Strasbourg because, as I outlined earlier, I think he will talk about a strong partnership with Europe, but in that partnership, there have to be mutual responsibilities. Q This is the town hall event? MR. GIBBS: Yes. That we have -- in those mutual responsibilities that we have to understand there are real threats out there in this world. You’ll hear the President obviously outline those -- Afghanistan and Pakistan make real the threats that we have -- and that in understanding that this is more than just the concern of the United States but rather the concern of the world, that, yes, the responsibility is there for Europe to step up. Q So we should read that language in the speech today as an effort to motivate and convince the governments to do more? MR. GIBBS: Yes, I mean, I don't -- and I guess I'd phrase it partly this way -- you know, the criticism of the United States for the past few years was a go-it-alone diplomacy, but if you -- Q And you guys made that criticism during the campaign. (Laughter.) MR. GIBBS: I may have read that in a few of your publications or seen it on a couple of your news channels, but I appreciate your simply regurgitating what I say on such an easy basis. But with -- with a partnership, again, there have to be those shared responsibilities and you can't just have -- you can't have just one person bearing the entire load or responsibility in a partnership. Q Does that mean that the United States -- MR. GIBBS: And I think that's the importance, quite frankly, of NATO. I think we've seen that over -- you know, tomorrow we celebrate the 60th anniversary of NATO. The whole idea of that was shared responsibility. Q But does that assume then that the United States' position is that to date the other countries have been shirking that responsibility? MR. GIBBS: Well, I don't think that will be the tone. I think, again, we've only -- the strategy that we've outlined is only a little less than a week old. And, again, I think our process is to build an agreement on that strategy and then to meet that strategy with the appropriate resources, focusing, as I said, on -- partly on trading and partly on security around these elections. Afghanistan | Air Force One | NATO | Pakistan | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | War on Terror | White House Press Corps Labels: Afghanistan, Air Force One, NATO, Pakistan, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, War on Terror, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 4:30:00 PM Toning Down The Expectations - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 3/31/09 — Tuesday, March 31, 2009 —  Q Can I ask about -- can I sort of put the Russia and China meetings together? Both of those nations have been pretty aggressive in the way they've talked about the U.S., particularly on the currency issue, and are kind of looking to boost their own image and stature in the world by talking that way. How big a part do you think those kinds of issues will play in the meetings tomorrow?MR. GIBBS: Well, I -- look, I can't speak for what those countries will bring up. I think it's been -- we've been quite clear that the reserve currency of the world is now and will continue to be the U.S. dollar, the strength and the breadth of our economy is unmatched. I do think the President looks forward to each of these meetings as a way, again, of speaking of issues that are of mutual concern. Obviously there are -- there's a lot to deal with on the world stage and this is an opportunity for him to get a chance to talk to these two leaders on a very personal level tomorrow. Q Both of these nations are trying to sort of use this moment to more assertively challenge the U.S. So how does the President go into those meetings, sort of knowing that they occur in that context? MR. GIBBS: Well, I don't think it -- look, I think the President will have the issues that he wants to discuss and bring them up with each of those two countries. I don't think that changes what the President does at all. Q Robert, there seems to have been a -- everything seems to be toning down the expectations, trying to tamp down expectations for everything on this trip. What are the fair measuring sticks? April 7th, flying back, measuring sticks out of G20, out of NATO, out of the EU -- is it -- what are they? MR. GIBBS: Well, look, let's take the G20, for example. I think it's likely that we will come out of the G20 with very broad agreement on measures that have to be taken to address the global recession. We've already gotten -- despite what a lot has been written about -- at the financial ministerial level just a couple of weeks ago the commitment to continue to evaluate what has to be done to spur the global economy along. Q What does that mean? "Commitment to evaluate" -- I mean, that sounds like -- do you worry you get so much to a broad consensus -- MR. GIBBS: Let me be more specific, because this also hasn't been reported -- so I'll give you a chance to enumerate my evaluation. As we said last Saturday on the phone call in preparation for this, if you total up what the G20 nations have pledged to address the economic downturn, it represents 1.8 percent of GDP for the G20 nations. That is a significant commitment to addressing the downturn in GDP around the world. The pledge is to evaluate whether or not more steps will be needed in the future to address the breadth and severity of the crisis. I think secondly there will be broad consensus about far stronger financial regulations to ensure that what we're dealing with now never happens again, that we have different rules of the road for the 21st century. And I think that the United States and the Obama administration last week demonstrated its commitment to leadership in this endeavor by rolling out as strong a set of financial regulations as any country has proposed -- as well as a commitment to get them through Congress this year. So that we will not simply propose new rules of the road, but have them instituted by the end of the year, which will make progress in the sense of we won't just be speaking about this stuff, we'll be acting on it. We'll address hedge funds and derivatives as part of regulation. There are tougher capital requirements. There are tools to ensure greater security and safety in our financial system. And finally, as both the President and the Secretary of Treasury have spoken about, they give any administration unique tools and necessary tools to deal with systemic risks like resolution authority, which is something we lack in dealing with something the size of AIG. Q NATO? MR. GIBBS: You know, NATO, I think we will have an opportunity to discuss and review what the President has proposed. As I said, the Secretary of State heard some -- was pleased with what she heard in public and in private. So I think we want -- I think we're making progress and we'll see progress that demonstrates that the concern, as I said a minute ago, about Afghanistan and Pakistan are not simply the concern of one country or one -- Q -- measureable, though? Is it troop commitments? MR. GIBBS: Well, I don't want to get ahead of where we are. I think if we can demonstrate that there's broad international concern and that people are working together to address it, I think that'll be a success. Q What specifically pleased the Secretary of State the most, that she heard? MR. GIBBS: Well, again, I think it was an understanding that -- well, first of all, bringing together neighbors in the region to address in a larger way the problems that we face in Afghanistan and Pakistan. As you know, the President committed at the beginning of his administration to reviewing our policy -- not simply as one that relates to Afghanistan or one that relates to Pakistan, but one that relates to the region as the whole. That was important. Demonstrating -- understanding and demonstrating that commitment I think is important. And she was pleased with what she heard, as I said, in public and in private. Look, I think it's a helpful development if they're willing to continue their involvement to have Iran, a neighbor of Afghanistan, who can and should be concerned about drug trafficking into their country. If they are willing to accept the responsibility of playing a constructive role in that region, I think that's an important development. We'll see as we move forward how that goes. Q What parts of the G20 agenda are still in flux or still being negotiated? Or is it pretty much set right now, in terms of what the outcome will be? MR. GIBBS: I can go ask those guys in terms of what, in terms of the communiqué. I think the call that he had with Prime Minister Brown demonstrated that they made progress on a number of issues. One last thing I forgot to mention at G20 is obviously -- and this is largely agreed upon -- is a far greater commitment to international institutions in order to help emerging economies as we see this massive slowdown in global trade. Q -- contribution? MR. GIBBS: Yes. Q And do you think -- is that on the China agenda? When he meets with Hu, is that about getting them to kick in on this? MR. GIBBS: I will double check on that. But I know, again, that that is -- you know, greater exports from our country into emerging economies means jobs back home, so that's important. Q You talked about his consultations going into the G20, you know, all the conversations he's had with leaders in person and on the phone. Could you quantify that? I mean, pull together how many conversations and meetings he's had? MR. GIBBS: I can go back and try to -- you mean with leaders, not -- Q Yes. MR. GIBBS: Okay. Again, I know that -- like I said, in the past 10 days he's had -- Q We know, but when the President announced -- it seems like he's had a couple different conversations with some leaders, that once -- MR. GIBBS: Let me go back and try to pull together all of it. Again, I know -- you know I think about most of them. As I said, conversations in the past 10 days or so -- teleconferences with Sarkozy and Merkel; conversations with Brown, and visits by Rudd and Lula to the Oval Office. I should mention he talked with Prime Minister Harper in within the last, I think, 48 hours. Q Was it about cars? MR. GIBBS: I think partly to talk about that, but also to talk about G20. Air Force One | Economy | G20 | International Relations | Obama Administration | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Economy, G20, International Relations, Obama Administration, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 10:33:00 PM Geithner's Bank Plan - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Bill Burton 03/19/09 — Friday, March 20, 2009 —  MR. BURTON: Good afternoon. The President made an offhand remark making fun of his own bowling that was in no way intended to disparage the Special Olympics. He thinks that the Special Olympics are a wonderful program that gives an opportunity to shine to people with disabilities from around the world.All right. Do you guys need anything? You've got the guidance, you've got -- Q Do you when we're going to get Geithner's bank plan out -- any plan on the banks? MR. BURTON: Soon, but I don't have a date for you? Q Soon? Like a week soon, or next week soon? MR. BURTON: Soon, but I don't have a date. I'll keep you posted, though. You'll be the first person I tell. Air Force One | Bill Burton | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Bill Burton, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 3:00:00 PM Taking Responsibility - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Bill Burton 03/18/09  Q So why did it take two days for the Treasury Secretary to tell the White House and, subsequently the President, to be informed about the -- what were then the impending bonuses?MR. BURTON: Well, I'm going to refer you to what the President had to say before Marine One took off from the White House. But he, of course, is taking responsibility for what we do here, and what he's making sure is that we get the tools that we need to make sure that this does not happen again. As for, you know, timelines and different things like that, we've been through this for the past couple of days, and Gibbs and others and folks at the Treasury have answered these questions. And for any more specifics on that, I'd refer you to some of the information that they shared with folks yesterday. Q Well, I mean, up until now, Robert -- until the timeline was released last night, we didn't exactly know what the sequence was. So, I mean, is there any concern that it took two days for the Treasury Secretary to tell the White House about it? MR. BURTON: As the President said, he's very confident in how Secretary Geithner is doing. And, you know, one of the things that we're going to talk about today in California -- because I imagine people are going to have questions about AIG, these bonuses, things that are happening in the economy. The President, as he has said, shares the profound anger of the American people about these bonuses, about the folks who are getting them. And we're doing everything we can to make sure that this doesn't happen again and to make sure that taxpayers are made whole on the money that's been paid out. Q Do you anticipate any change in the internal communication system, though, so that it will flow more smoothly, more quickly? MR. BURTON: As I said, the President feels good about how Secretary Geithner is doing, and we're looking forward at what we can do to make sure that we don't see these sort of egregious problems ever again. Q The bonuses that have already been paid at AIG, there's really nothing that can be done about that, at least from the executive branch -- is that the thinking? MR. BURTON: Well, the good news is some progress has actually been made on this, in the sense that -- and Liddy talked about this in his testimony today -- some folks at AIG have already paid back their bonuses. Other people are being encouraged to do the exact same thing. So some progress is getting made on that. Secretary Geithner outlined how taxpayers would be made whole in his letter to Congress last night, and I can get that to you if you don't, by chance, have it. And, you know, so we're going to be working with AIG to see what we can do here to make sure that taxpayers are getting exactly what they deserve from the investments that we're making in order to stabilize that company. AIG | Air Force One | Bill Burton | Legislation | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner | White House Press Corps Labels: AIG, Air Force One, Bill Burton, Legislation, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 2:17:00 PM Are You Better Off Now Than You Were Four Months Ago? - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 3/6/09 — Friday, March 06, 2009 —  Q Can I ask you about the trip today, and then a question about the FDIC? In terms of the trip today, you're going to highlight 25 jobs saved -- and we've lost 651,000, I believe, last month. So, I mean, do you think this makes even a dent in the psyche of the American people? MR. GIBBS: Well, I mean, you know, let's -- I think if -- I think on that scale, you'd never even undertake -- you'd never even undertake any action to seek cuts in wasteful spending unless you saved trillions of dollars with the stroke of one pen. I mean, I think it's a -- you know, I'm sure it's one viewpoint. I think it's a bit cynical to think that the only jobs created or saved today will be the 25 or 27 that the President is going to see in Columbus. I think it demonstrates for the American people that the President has a plan to get the economy moving again, that we're seeing results from that plan, and that the American people -- because they understand this -- know it's going to take us a while to get out of this hole, but that there are brighter days ahead. I'm always amazed -- you know, a week ago we were talking down the economy. This week we're not talking the economy up to the heights of which we -- you know, I mean, there's -- it's a moving set of hurdles. Air Force One | Economy | Obama Administration | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | Unemployment | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Economy, Obama Administration, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, Unemployment, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 10:52:00 PM Surge of Doubletalk - White House Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 2/27/09 — Monday, March 02, 2009 —  Q The former NSC spokesman, Gordon Johndroe, today said that this only was possible -- this plan laid out today was only possible because of the surge, and that in fact this plan is in keeping with basically the rough outlines of what the Bush administration had thought of doing itself. How would you characterize that? And does the President believe the surge was necessary to get to this point?MR. GIBBS: Well, I think as the President said in the campaign, that the security situation has gotten better in the -- over the past couple years in Iraq; the political situation hasn't always followed as quickly. And insofar as the Status of Forces Agreement dictated an end to our involvement in Iraq, there may be certainly some consistency with the SOFA, but I think what the President laid out was something that was -- today was consistent with what he pledged to do in the campaign, to do so in a way that was responsible, do so in a way that was in keeping with his commitment to protect our troops and to speak with commanders on the ground and at the Pentagon in order to make it happen. Obviously we've got a long way to go in Iraq. And I think the President enumerated that a military drawdown is but one of many functions that have to continue to take place in order to have the, as I think the President said, the hard opportunity the Iraqis now have to take their country and govern and protect it effectively. Obviously the President outlined a series of strategies, including renewed diplomatic efforts in the region in order to bring Iraq into sort of the community in the region, but also to ensure that there's continued political improvement with the election scheduled this year, and still some hard decisions that have to be made on things like an oil law. Q Did he call any other ex-Presidents to tell them what was going on? MR. GIBBS: I don't believe he called any ex-Presidents. I know that members of the team -- of our national security team were reaching out to many of their counterparts. Q Why did he call Bush and not Clinton or the senior Bush? What informed this -- MR. GIBBS: Well, again, I think obviously this was something that was a pretty big issue for the most previous President, and because of that, felt it important to call and let him know. Q I'm sorry, but I didn't hear an answer to Anne's specific question of whether President Obama thinks the surge worked. I heard him talk about improved security and I heard him thank the military. But what about the strategy? MR. GIBBS: Well, but remember that -- go back and read the very beginning, the stories of what the surge outlined. The surge was quite clearly an effort to add more troops that would ultimately bring about a change in the political reconciliation and dynamic in the country. And while the security situation did show improvement, we still -- there still lacks some political reconciliation and certainly facets of what would ultimately be the agreements necessary for the country to prosper in the long term. So I think that, again, while the security situation improved, there still is some political improvement that can and must take place in order for Iraq to be stable. Q Just to give it one more try. Does the President think that if were it not for the surge -- does the President think that the surge allowed him to make the decision he did today, made it more likely that it will end successfully? MR. GIBBS: Again, I think the President believed that the surge -- (laughter) -- I mean -- Q Believed that the surge -- MR. GIBBS: Again, the surge helped improve the security situation, as he said, but I think, remember, again -- and again, please go back and read, the goal of the surge was to change the security situation so that a political reconciliation could be brought about. But let me pivot a little bit by saying, and the President said this after the speech in an interview later on, which is, you know, the situation in Iraq and in the region is it's far less important for us to turn back and look backwards -- we could debate about whether we should have been there; the President was on one side and some people were on another; we could debate about how long we stayed; we could debate about the surge; we could debate about recommendations from the Baker-Hamilton commission. But all of that is somewhat moot given the situation of where we are today and what has to happen and what the President believes should happen between now and the end of August of 2010, and ultimately the end of December in 2011. Iraq | President Bush | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | War on Terror | White House Press Corps Labels: Iraq, President Bush, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, War on Terror, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 5:54:00 PM Any Particular Concerns - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 2/16/09 — Thursday, February 19, 2009 —  Q And what about Wall Street worries? Are there any plans -- are there any worries about what Wall Street might do after these reports are given to the administration tomorrow?MR. GIBBS: You know, I don't know of any particular concerns that Wall Street might have over these. Obviously, I think Wall Street and Main Street continue to be concerned about where we are economically. But, again -- I'll paraphrase part of your question, which was to put our economy back on a path toward sustained, long-term economic growth is likely going to require us looking beyond one day's market reaction to anything, in order to get us on that pathway. Air Force One | Economy | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Economy, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 12:03:00 AM Public Comment Period Waiver - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 2/12/09 — Wednesday, February 18, 2009 —  Q During the campaign I'm pretty sure it was on your website that you said that all bills should have some kind of public comment period and they should be posted on the website for five days before the President signs it. What are you going to do about this one?MR. GIBBS: That included non-emergency legislation. Q Ahhh -- the waiver. (Laughter.) There was a waiver. MR. GIBBS: It's not a waiver, it was written right there on the website. We are working out a series of procedures to ensure that -- for non-emergency legislation, that people do have five days to look at the legislation that's been passed by Congress before it's signed into law. There have been some -- we're working through the technicalities of how that happens and we'll get a process together. I know there's something up on the White House blog on this right now, or has been within the past few days. Obviously, if we get this bill, this would certainly meet the President's test of emergency legislation. And if we're lucky enough to have it pass, we'll sign it rather quickly. Q And I just have a question about that. What would be the point of the public only getting to look at it by the time it's been completely passed and the President is about to sign it? I mean, by then it's kind of all over. MR. GIBBS: Mara, I'm amazed at the number of differing hurdles that -- Q I'm just curious. You know, you didn't post it while it was in progress. In other words, you're just waiting until the very end -- MR. GIBBS: Mara, people can go to the same website you go to when you read bills. There's congress.gov, there's the Library of Congress. There are any number of resources. I can only imagine that your reporting is informed by the careful examination of that very legislation throughout the process -- Q I'm just wondering why you wanted the five days in the first place. MR. GIBBS: It's important to put out -- for people to understand -- I think we've seen instances where legislation is done quickly and it's important for people to get a look at what's in those bills. And that's why the President outlined that policy. Air Force One | Legislation | Obama Administration | Open Government | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Office Labels: Air Force One, Legislation, Obama Administration, Open Government, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 8:23:00 PM MR GIBBS: I don't know - Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 2/17/09 — Tuesday, February 17, 2009 —  Q Has the President had a chance to review the Leahy truth commission proposal since his press conference?MR. GIBBS: I don't think I -- I don't have anything to add to what he said last week. Q Another on the joint address. How much of it will be foreign policy? MR. GIBBS: I think there will be -- I mean, I think you'd have a hard time talking about our economy without talking about our commitments around the world, the health of our force structure, and obviously what is going on in both Iraq and Afghanistan. So obviously that will be a part of the address. Q Is the Afghanistan decision ready yet? MR. GIBBS: Soon. Q There are reports that President Obama is going to keep all 93 U.S. attorneys; he's not going to fire any of them. Can you comment on that at all? MR. GIBBS: Let me check on that report. I don't remember if that's quite right, so before I get out there I will -- I'll check when we land. Q Robert, did the President invite any members of Congress to fly with him today? MR. GIBBS: I don't know -- I don't think there are any members of Congress on this flight. Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps | White House Press Secretary Labels: Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps, White House Press Secretary >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 5:35:00 PM A Plan That Folks Agree On - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Robert Gibbs 2/9/09 — Monday, February 09, 2009 —  Q Axelrod pointed out that the President's approval ratings, when you talk about the stimulus, are higher than Congress. Why isn't the President taking more of a leadership role. You just said, the makeup of the bill should be up to the House and the Senate. Why not -- why doesn't the President say, okay, no, no, this is a provision, this is a provision?MR. GIBBS: Well, let me -- let me start by rejecting more or less the premise of your question, that the President isn't taking a leadership role. Q Well, I don't say he wasn't, I said "more of a." MR. GIBBS: Okay. Maybe I misunderstood the question. Q No, I didn't mean to suggest that he wasn't taking a leadership role. Like, why not -- why not exert more about the details of the plan than the House and the Senate? MR. GIBBS: I feel confident that by -- certainly through Tuesday and then hopefully by the end of the week, we can get a plan that folks agree on and get it to his desk. I think you'll see the President continue to exert the type of leadership that the American people are looking for; that you'll see the President highlight for all of Washington the problems that Americans are facing, particularly in Elkhart and next in Fort Myers, and then Thursday in Peoria where, you know, Caterpillar announced layoffs based on a faltering economy. Air Force One | Economy | Legislation | President Obama | Press Gaggle | Robert Gibbs | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Economy, Legislation, President Obama, Press Gaggle, Robert Gibbs, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 4:24:00 PM Automakers Bailout Up in the Air - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Dana Perino 12/12/08 — Friday, December 12, 2008 —  Q Will you start using TARP money now? Are you going to direct the Treasury --MS. PERINO: I didn't say that. I didn't say that. I said that given the current state of the U.S. economy, we'll consider other options if necessary, and I said including use of some of the TARP; that's one of the options. Q How soon -- walk us through his thought process right now. Who does he need to talk to first? What decisions need to be made before he decides -- MS. PERINO: He's in regular contact with all of his economic advisors. And so we'll be weighing all of the options and making decisions as soon as we need to. Q How soon does he feel he needs to make a decision? MS. PERINO: We didn't discuss that. I mean, obviously we have talked about he urgency of the situation. We have been pushing to get this done; we wanted to get it done last night. Both Congress and the -- the House and the Senate had bipartisan majorities supporting our approach, but they didn't get it over the goal line. And so we have to consider what other options we would take. But I don't have a time frame on it. Q Are you basically saying that you are going to make the decision -- it's not Congress now? I mean, basically, you are going to make the decision on what to do -- MS. PERINO: Congress spoke. Congress spoke last night. They don't have the votes to do anything, despite having majorities in both the House and the Senate supporting a reasonable approach that we put forward. We thought that the legislation could have even been improved. We thought that senators were making good progress last night and talking about the Corker amendment. But again, it just -- it didn't get the votes that it needed to pass the Senate. They needed 60; I think they had 53. Q You mentioned the use of -- you mentioned TARP funds as one option. Are there any other options? MS. PERINO: We're going to weigh all options. I mentioned TARP, as that's been something that you all have been asking about for weeks. And it's just one of the options that's out there, sure. Q Can you describe the other options? MS. PERINO: No. Q Is the Federal Reserve -- cash from the Federal Reserve an option? MS. PERINO: I don't know. Q Will the decision be made this week? I mean, it's Friday today. Or is next week -- MS. PERINO: I don't know. Air Force One | Automobile Industry | Congress | Dana Perino | Legislation | President Bush | Press Gaggle | TARP | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Automobile Industry, Congress, Dana Perino, Legislation, President Bush, Press Gaggle, TARP, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 9:45:00 PM The Bush Legacy - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Dana Perino 12/2/08 — Tuesday, December 02, 2008 —  Q Dana, can you talk about the event yesterday, the event today, and I think there's going to be a lot of stuff coming up where the President -- is he intending to highlight some of the successes of his tenure? I mean, is there a concerted effort to do that? There seems to be now a lot of events looking at -- MS. PERINO: We have thought about it. Q We've done the 2 million plus for the AIDS program, the 110,000 here -- MS. PERINO: Yesterday was World AIDS Day. Q Yes, I realize there are other reasons. But I'm just saying, is there -- MS. PERINO: Yes, over time we've done different speeches since I think August, talking about the President's record on judicial nominees, and on keeping America safe, on the faith-based -- remember we did the faith-based conference. So, we have looked to opportunities for the President to be able to talk about some of his legacy items, some things that he will be remembered for. He talked about that a little bit yesterday. You saw the Charlie Gibson interview. So, now is the right time for us to be able to identify some opportunities where the President can either give a speech, or do a roundtable like he's doing today. We don't expect the children, the mentoring of children to be front-page news, but we do want to highlight some of these programs that the President has conceived and announced, and then the goal was exceeded. And we think that it's important for people to realize that while the President of the United States on any given day works on a variety of issues that are pressing and front-page news regarding the economy or terrorist attacks, there are other programs like this one that are changing people's lives one at a time. That's one of the things the President wanted to do through the faith-based initiative. So we'll talk about this one. He's giving a speech on the Middle East on Friday. So there's a lot of different opportunities, and you'll sort of see them between now and, I guess, 49 days from now. Air Force One | Dana Perino | President Bush | Press Gaggle | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Dana Perino, President Bush, Press Gaggle, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 9:29:00 PM NSA and Tony Blair - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Dana Perino 11/25/08 — Tuesday, November 25, 2008 —  Q A former NSA linguist is saying that the U.S. spied on Tony Blair. Do you have anything on that? MS. PERINO: I don't have anything on that. No, I would not comment. And I saw reports about that. President Bush doesn't recall anything of that sort. So that's all I'd have to say on it. Q You asked him about it, and he doesn't recall anything of that sort -- MS. PERINO: This story has been out there for a while. It's been circulating around. I don't know why all of a sudden everybody is writing about it, because -- maybe they read it on a blog or something. I don't know. Air Force One | Dana Perino | NSA | President Bush | Press Gaggle | Tony Blair | White House Press Corps | Wiretapping Labels: Air Force One, Dana Perino, NSA, President Bush, Press Gaggle, Tony Blair, White House Press Corps, Wiretapping >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 7:01:00 PM Mindless Opposition of Reid & Pelosi - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Dana Perino 11/21/08 — Friday, November 21, 2008 —  Q Dana, are you saying Congress should have stayed in session and acted to authorize the 136 loans right now, and not waited a couple of weeks?MS. PERINO: Well, it seems to me that it's sort of senseless. You had a bipartisan path forward to help the automakers, as long as they were willing to show viability through the 136 program, that would not relax environmental standards. And nothing would bar the Congress from putting more money towards helping companies retool their plants if they wanted to in the future. So I would -- I just think that it was mindless opposition to anything that we would propose, and they cut off their nose to spite their face. So now we'll have to wait and see if they even come back on December 8th. But one thing that is very curious is how in the world are 535 members of Congress going to determine viability of a company? It's mind-boggling. They can't even get together to pass a Mother's Day resolution. So we are a little bit perplexed as to what they plan to do when they get back on the 8th and how they plan to do it. We agree that the viability portion of the language is absolutely critical. But we want these automakers to succeed. We don't want to see the huge numbers of unemployment that would result from a possible insolvency. And these companies have to be willing to make hard decisions to change for the long run. Q And those who are engaged in mindless opposition would be Reid, Pelosi, those people? MS. PERINO: Well, I think it's obvious. I don't have to name them -- they know who they are; you know who they are. They're the people who are opposing our plan, and the people who decided to go home without actually getting anything done. I mean, this is like do-nothing Congress part two, same song as they sang last time. And as I said, we will do what we can to try to put forward innovative policies like we had with this 136 program. It had a bipartisan path to succeed. And they wouldn't even allow for a vote. What kind of democracy is that? So we're a little bit perplexed. But we'll see what the companies come up with, and if they can meet the Democrats' so-called test. Okay. Automobile Industry | Congress | Dana Perino | Democracy | Harry Reid | Nancy Pelosi | Press Gaggle | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Automobile Industry, Congress, Dana Perino, Democracy, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Press Gaggle, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 6:47:00 PM Obama Leaks About Bush White House Meeting - Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum Press Gaggle by Dana Perino 11/11/08 — Tuesday, November 11, 2008 —  Q Dana, so just to make that even clearer, is it wrong to say that the President told President-elect Obama that he would consider loans to automakers if Congress passed the free trade agreement or took up the free trade agreement? MS. PERINO: As I said, there was no linkage between -- Q So this was an incorrect report? MS. PERINO: Well, look, there's two anonymous aides -- or one anonymous aide who is apparently telling this story. I know from some reporters who told me that they were encouraged by others on the Obama team not to write that story because it was inaccurate. So, look, I'll let unidentified aides defend themselves, if you guys can find them. But I can tell you here, on the record, not afraid to say it, the President does support free trade; that's no secret. Everyone knows the President has talked about that a lot. He even spent time in his State of the Union address talking about the concerns he has about protectionism and isolationism, which could lead to a further weakening of our economy. That's what he's trying to work against. And when he has the leaders here this weekend, he's going to talk a lot about that. Dana Perino | Leaks | President Bush | President-Elect Obama | Press Gaggle | White House Press Corps Labels: Dana Perino, Leaks, President Bush, President-Elect Obama, Press Gaggle, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 5:05:00 PM G7 Pileup - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Dana Perino 10/10/08 — Friday, October 10, 2008 —  Q What is -- what's the President hoping to achieve with the ministers' meeting tomorrow, with the G7 meeting?MS. PERINO: Well, we have been keeping you regularly updated on all the calls and coordination amongst the G7 countries and beyond, because as we said this morning, the President spoke to Prime Minister Rudd, I expect he spoke to President Lula earlier this week, amongst others. The G7 has been working together on a variety of things: sharing information, finding common areas where they can work together on instituting rescues that will address their individual nation's needs, as well as what we need to do as a whole, since we are all so interconnected. So today's meeting at the Treasury Department will allow them to meet face to face, maybe dot some "I's," cross some "T's," and then tomorrow morning the President will have a chance to meet with them. I'm going to let that meeting take place, but I will tell you that the goal of the meeting overall is to continue the good communication and cooperative spirit of trying to find common solutions, while respecting the fact that each nation has individual problems and challenges and needs and ways to address them. Q Dana, has anyone at the White House spoken to Berlusconi or any of his aides about his proposal to close global markets? MS. PERINO: I don't know if you saw an update, but it was retracted. Q Did you guys talk to him about retracting -- MS. PERINO: No, I don't think so. I think that it all happened so fast it was -- Q It wasn't like the White House asked him to retract that or anything like that? MS. PERINO: Not that I'm aware of. I just saw a news report as it came across. I don't know of any of us -- I wasn't involved at all. Q What about the idea of guaranteeing some of the bad debt at the banks? MS. PERINO: This is one of the ideas that Gordon Brown has put forward. What we have said is that with any proposal that's put forward by one of our global partners, that we'll take a look at it and we will review it, but beyond that I don't have any comment on it. Q What about insuring all deposits temporarily at U.S. banks? MS. PERINO: All of those things are questions that the policymakers can take up and think about, discuss. And then once we have -- if we have a decision about moving forward on any of those issues, it will either come out of the Treasury Department or we'll keep you updated. Air Force One | Dana Perino | Economy | G7 | President Bush | Press Gaggle | Treasury Department | Wall Street | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Dana Perino, Economy, G7, President Bush, Press Gaggle, Treasury Department, Wall Street, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 5:13:00 PM The Press and Body Language - Press Gaggle by Scott Stanzel 10/6/08 — Monday, October 06, 2008 —  Q If there's any -- going to be any change or update in whether [the President] might speak on the economy today, can you give us a heads up?Q -- we might hear from him when he gets back -- I mean, that's the body language I took from you. MR. STANZEL: You guys are all great at reading body language. Q Is that true? MR. STANZEL: No, it's not. But I think you're all very adept at reading body language. But my body shifting and walking back and forth here was not meant to indicate anything whatsoever, other than I read out this President's schedule as it stands right now. Economy | President Bush | Press Gaggle | Scott Stanzel | White House Press Corps Labels: Economy, President Bush, Press Gaggle, Scott Stanzel, Wall Street, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 4:26:00 PM Scott McClellan Memoir - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Dana Perino 5/28/08 — Wednesday, May 28, 2008 —  Q Did Scott tell you personally about his concerns that he raised in the book? Because I know you said you're a friend of Scott's.MS. PERINO: Never. Q I'm sorry, what? Q "Never" to have what? I didn't hear it all. MS. PERINO: His question was, had I ever heard such concerns? And I said, "Never." Q The President often talks about, you know, history being the judge. And this is somebody who had a position where they could see more than, certainly, the public does. After some years of reflection, perhaps, looking back, thinking out of the limelight in private and everything, and coming up with his first version of history, isn't it a concern that, for you, for the administration, that the conclusions he's come to are the ones of your critics, essentially, rather than the supporters of the administration? MS. PERINO: I think this is a unique situation. I don't think that this is so much as writing history as rewriting history. And when the President talks about "it will take a while," I think that that is just based on historical fact. I mean, it takes a while for any type of administration to be understood, and I think this is an anomaly. Q Even though you don't -- you don't think there are others out there who maybe also were once supporters of the war, looked at the facts as we knew them at the time, and then to have now come around, as he says in the book, that he doesn't think it was the right decision? That's not a question of intelligence. MS. PERINO: I'm not saying that's not the case, and I don't know. I don't go around and take a survey. But your question was, do I think that other people are going to turn around 180 degrees and become this -- have these expressions of concerns that they did not voice when they were at the White House. And so the question is, what did you really believe? Did you believe what you said at the time, or do you believe what you believe -- say you believe now? And I'm not going to be a judge of that. You all have to figure that out, or he'll have to answer for it for himself. I mean, I'm not going to -- as Jeremy suggested, the question being, would we go line-by-line through the book -- absolutely not. We have a lot more important things to do than that. Q One specific factual thing. Scott suggested in the book that it was very unusual for Karl and for Libby to talk together, and that he was suspicious about that when he saw them talk one time. Was it unusual for those two to talk? MS. PERINO: I found that to be strange. People in the White House have to talk to one another on a variety of different subjects. Who knows what the -- if that conversation -- if a conversation took place. Would it be surprising to me if Karl Rove and Scooter Libby, as the Director of Political Affairs Operation and the Chief of Staff to the Vice President, of whom was very important in our reelection efforts and our political efforts, would it be a surprise that they would have a conversation? Absolutely not. What would be a surprise is if they didn't have conversations. So I don't put much stock in that, but I don't know the facts. And I think he admits in the book that he doesn't either. Air Force One | Dana Perino | Iraq | Karl Rove | Press Gaggle | Scooter Libby | Scott McClellan | White House Press Corps | White House Press Secretary Labels: Air Force One, Dana Perino, Iraq, Karl Rove, Press Gaggle, Scooter Libby, Scott McClellan, White House Press Corps, White House Press Secretary >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 5:07:00 PM Farm Bill & Veto - Air Force One Press Gaggle by Dana Perino 5/22/08 — Thursday, May 22, 2008 —  Q Farm bill -- where are we with the farm bill?MS. PERINO: You tell me -- or the Democrats tell me. Q What did he veto? MS. PERINO: He vetoed -- the President vetoed the bill that the Democrats sent us. And, look, I understand there's a technical error and we'll have to see what the Congress decides to do, but maybe it gives them one more chance to take a look and think about how much they're asking the taxpayers to spend at a time of record farm income. The Congress had an opportunity to put forward -- I'm sorry -- to implement reforms, much needed reforms, and they decided not to. And I think with this move it shows that they can even up screw up spending the taxpayers' money unwisely. Q What was that -- MS. PERINO: Said they can -- they've proved that they can even screw up spending the taxpayers' money unwisely. (Laughter.) Laughter by reporters. (Laughter.) Air Force One | Congress | Dana Perino | Legislation | Pork | Press Gaggle | Vetoes | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Congress, Dana Perino, Legislation, Pork, Press Gaggle, Vetoes, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 10:14:00 PM Air Force One Press Gaggle by Dana Perino 4/21/08 (Hamas "Peace" Deal) — Monday, April 21, 2008 —  MS. PERINO: Any other topics?Q Israel, and Hamas's reported willingness to engage in a peace deal. Do you have any reaction on that? MS. PERINO: Well, I think that -- you're referring to what President Carter said about what he was told? I think that what you have to do is look at -- it's possible that that was whispered in his ear in a private meeting. We did not support the private meeting, a meeting with a terrorist organization. And I think you have to look at the public comments of Hamas, and beyond that, look at the behavior, and just look at what happened over the weekend in terms of the very sophisticated attacks around the border crossings, and the people -- innocent people, who were killed right there. So I take it with a -- we take it with a grain of salt. And we have to look at public comments, and we also have to look at actions. And actions speak louder than words. Air Force One | Dana Perino | Hamas | Israel | Jimmy Carter | Middle East | Press Gaggle | War on Terror | White House Press Corps Labels: Air Force One, Dana Perino, Hamas, Israel, Jimmy Carter, Middle East, Press Gaggle, War on Terror, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 10:09:00 PM Press Gaggle by Tony Fratto 4/17/08 (British Prime Minister Gordon Brown) — Thursday, April 17, 2008 —  MR. FRATTO: Any other questions?Q Yes, the Gordon Brown. So last time the President told us, no, he's not angry at Gordon Brown for pulling troops out of Iraq; Gordon Brown has since said, since the fighting erupted around Basra, the clampdown on the Shiite militias -- attempted clampdown, he's going to put those withdrawal plans on hold. Is the President going to say "I told you so" today? MR. FRATTO: No, look -- we think that the British have been very responsible -- (Announcement interruption.) MR. FRATTO: Maybe someone could tell our staff that a gaggle is still ongoing. (Laughter.) No, look, we have a -- we think the British have been very responsible in their operations in Basra. Their support for the Iraqi-led operation a couple weeks ago was impressive, even heroic, flying helicopter runs evacuating injured soldiers from the fighting, was -- under fire -- was very impressive. They're performing their overwatch mission we think with great courage and distinction. And of course we expect that Iraq, Afghanistan and other operations that we're involved with with the U.K. will be discussed today. And so you'll have a chance to hear from the President and the Prime Minister this afternoon on that. Q Does the President have any feelings about Gordon Brown meeting with the -- his would-be successors this morning? Does he feel that's good, a problem? What's his reaction to that? MR. FRATTO: We don't think it's a problem. I haven't asked the President on that, but I can tell you, you know, generally we think it's probably a wise move by the Prime Minister to get to know who -- one of the individuals who will likely be President in a year from now. So it makes sense. We think it's -- we certainly have no objections to it at all. Afghanistan | Gordon Brown | Iraq | President Bush | Press Gaggle | Tony Fratto | United Kingdom | White House Press Corps Labels: Afghanistan, Gordon Brown, Iraq, President Bush, Press Gaggle, Tony Fratto, United Kingdom, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 9:37:00 PM Press Gaggle by Dana Perino 4/1/08 (Ukraine and Georgia Membership Action Plans) — Tuesday, April 01, 2008 —  Q Is there any compromise -- short of a MAP plan -- that would be acceptable, that would still be a positive signal, but that everybody might get on board with?MS. PERINO: Certainly not one that we're focusing on. The President was very clear today in response to a question at the press conference that while some might have suggested that the President would trade MAP for better relations with Russia, that he was very clear to President Putin that he supports Ukraine and Georgia being given MAP; this is their chance for NATO membership, it is not NATO membership. At the end of that process, those countries might decide that it's not for them. And so he thinks that they should be given a chance. And so we're not focusing on anything short of that, but continuing to have discussion with our allies across the board, both from the State Department level all the way up to the President. Q What are the odds at this point? I mean, the Germans have been pretty strong on this, saying they don't think this is appropriate, this morning. Q And the French, as well. Q And the French, too. MS. PERINO: I saw one of the things that the French Foreign Minister said today, that -- something along the lines that Europe and Russia need to have discussions about possible MAP for Ukraine and Georgia. The last time we checked, Russia didn't get a vote. And this is a NATO discussion, a NATO exercise, and it will be a NATO decision. And again, the President's position is very clear. We understand that other people may have disagreements, but we believe that giving these two states that want to be democratic, independent and sovereign a chance to join NATO is important and it should not be derailed. Q What does it say about the state of the Alliance today, that they're probably not on the same page when it comes to this next step, that the future is still under some debate within the -- especially between East and West? MS. PERINO: I couldn't tell you about all the NATO summits going all the way back. These are healthy, independent, sovereign countries that get together and have robust debates about various issues. And so I think that the fact that we can all have these frank and open discussions is a good sign. And that's one of the reasons the President enjoys coming to these meetings, because they're clarifying moments where people can fully express themselves and lay it out on the table. The President has made himself very clear, that the door to NATO should remain open, and especially for countries that have shown that they have the will and the determination, and they, on the merits, deserve to be considered for membership -- a Membership Action Plan. Dana Perino | Georgia | NATO | Press Gaggle | Ukraine | White House Press Corps Labels: Dana Perino, Georgia, NATO, Press Gaggle, Ukraine, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 9:08:00 PM Air Force One Press Gaggle by Dana Perino — Monday, February 18, 2008 — MS. PERINO: Yes. I wanted to let you know that the President and Mrs. Bush had the opportunity to visit with Ellie Leblond -- that is their niece -- Doro Koch's niece(*). Q How old is she?  MS. PERINO: She's 19, and she's here in the country for a few months working with a group called the Tanzanian Children's Fund. And a woman named India Howell, who is the founder and director, joined them for the visit, as did Nano Chatfield -- she's the president of the board of directors of the Tanzanian Children's Fund. India Howell is the founder and director. I would encourage you, if you have a chance, to look up the Tanzanian Children's Fund website, because they do some really great work with orphans. And India Howell has been in Africa since -- well, she first climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in 1998, and she says in her bio that it changed her life and that she wanted to fulfill a lifelong dream of doing something to help orphans. And so she started an orphanage first in her own home, and then expanded it, and now she serves over 40 -- 41 children are living here with her right now at what they call a children's village. That was as of March 2007, there were 41 children living with her in the children's village. And so Ellie is there volunteering for a few months. (*) Ellie Leblond is Doro Koch's daughter Africa | Air Force One | Dana Perino | Doro Koch | Ellie Leblond | India Howel | President Bush | Press Gaggle | Tanzanian Children's Fund | Tanzania | White House Press Corps Labels: Africa, Air Force One, Dana Perino, Doro Koch, Ellie Leblond, India Howell, President Bush, Press Gaggle, Tanzania, Tanzanian Children's Fund, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 10:26:00 PM Air Force One Press Gaggle by Tony Fratto 10/15/07 (Armenian Genocide Resolution) — Monday, October 15, 2007 — MR. FRATTO: I don't have -- I don't know anything about plans for a phone call. But there should be no question of the President's views on this issue and the damage that this resolution can do to our U.S. foreign policy interests. This isn't just a view that's expressed by the administration; this is a view that's been expressed by at least, I believe eight former Secretaries of State on a bipartisan basis, a number of former Defense Secretaries, by our Turkish allies, by independent experts, that this is an important time for U.S.-Turkish relations, and we would strongly encourage the Speaker not to bring this to a vote, and should it come to a vote, we will strongly encourage members not to support it. This is not the best way to deal with this issue. It is, admittedly, a tragic historical event, which has been well documented, but there are better ways to deal with this issue than -- the most important outcome that I think everyone would like to see are improved Turkish and Armenian relations. And so we encourage the Turks and Armenian authorities to resolve this issue between themselves, and not for the U.S. House of Representatives to insert itself and make this -- make the prospects for resolving the issue more difficult. We should be trying to make it less difficult. Air Force One | Armenia | Genocide | Iraq | Middle East Labels: Air Force One, Armenia, Genocide, Iraq, Middle East, Press Gaggle, Resolutions, Tony Fratto, Turkey, White House Press Corps >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 8:41:00 PM Air Force One Press Gaggle by Tony Fratto 10/12/07 (Al Gore and the Nobel Prize) — Friday, October 12, 2007 — MR. FRATTO: Yes, the President learned about it this morning. Of course, he's happy for Vice President Gore, happy for the International Panel on Climate Change scientists, who also shared the Peace Prize. Obviously it's an important recognition and we're sure the Vice President is thrilled. Q Is he going to call him? MR. FRATTO: I don't know of any plans to make calls to any of the winners at this point. Q (Inaudible.) MR. FRATTO: Well, obviously Vice President Gore has helped to bring attention to climate change. The IPCC scientists have done remarkable work to bring scientific rigor to the questions surrounding climate change. And obviously the next step for -- and really the most difficult step is implementing climate change strategies that are effective and practical, and that allow for continued economic development and for countries to do the work that they need to do to lift people out of poverty. And that's a challenging task. That's why the President brought together the major economies -- the announcement he had prior to the G8 and then the summit meeting last week -- I guess it was two weeks ago now -- to discuss a strategy for climate change. And that's the next step and that's an important step. Q Given that his approach on climate is so different from Al Gore's, does he feel that this award is in any way sending a message about his own policies? MR. FRATTO: I'm not sure what -- no, I don't see it that way at all. No. Q Does he think, though, that the award will place pressure on him and on the Bush administration to do more quickly, and to maybe fall into line with what other countries want, which are mandatory caps on emissions? MR. FRATTO: No. Al Gore | Global Warming | Nobel Prize | Press Gaggle | President Bush | Tony Fratto Labels: Air Force One, Al Gore, Global Warming, Nobel Prize, President Bush, Press Gaggle, Tony Fratto >> Full Story
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 5:20:00 PM Press Gaggle by National Security Advisor Steve Hadley 9/24/07 (President's Speech to the UN) — Monday, September 24, 2007 — MR. HADLEY: A little bit, but it won't be a major focus. But I'd like to not get into more what will be in or not in the speech. We've given you a sense of sort of the framework and the thematic, and I'd like to save the rest of it for the President tomorrow. Q Do you have any reaction to the theme of what Ahmadinejad has been saying today; essentially that, why should we go to war, there is no war in the offing, we're not walking towards war with the United States? Are those comments in any way helpful? MR. HADLEY: Look, what would be helpful is for Iranian officials to give some direction so that they would stop the movement of equipment into Iraq, and training people in Iraq who are killing innocent Iraqis, Iraqi security forces and our kids. What would be helpful is if Iran would get out of the business of supporting terror, and agree to what's been offered to them: to suspend their enrichments capability so we can sit down and negotiate a resolution to the nuclear issue, that would give the Iranian people an opportunity for a truly peaceful civil nuclear program, and reassure the international community they're not trying to find a nuclear weapon. And it would be nice for this regime to give their people more of an opportunity to participate in government. I mean, look -- it would be nice for this regime to take some concrete steps to address the agenda, that not only the United States has, but really the whole international community has with the government of Iran. Thanks a lot. Labels: Ahmadinejad, Iran, President Bush, Press Gaggle, Sanctions, Stephen Hadley, United Nations, White House Press Corps
Posted by White House Press Corps @ 7:13:00 PM
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