Administration of George W. Bush, 2004 / Dec. 6 addressed the concerns of, by far, the ma- a piece of legislation that is important for jority of Members of both the House and the security of our country. the . As we speak, we’re working Thank you. with the key Members to address concerns. I call upon the Congress to pass the intel- NOTE: The President spoke at 9:35 a.m. in ligence bill. It is a good piece of legislation. the Oval Office at the . In his It is a necessary piece of legislation. It’s remarks, he referred to U.S. Ambassador to John D. Negroponte.

Remarks Following Discussions With Abdullah II of December 6, 2004

President Bush. Your Majesty, welcome So welcome, sir. I’m really glad to have back to the Oval Office. It is my honor you back. to receive you here again. And every time King Abdullah. Thank you. Thank you, you come, I enjoy our conversations, and Mr. President. We’re delighted to be back I’m impressed by the progress that your here and to thank you, Mr. President, for, good country is making. really, the outstanding support that you are Today we had a chance to talk about giving our part of the world, and the Presi- the Jordanian economy and the growth of dent’s dedication to bring hope and peace, the economy. And the amount of trade be- hopefully, to Israelis and Palestinians. I tween our countries is growing, which is know that you have been committed in the to the benefit of the Jordanian people as past 4 years in identifying a future for the well as to the American people. And I ap- Israelis and the Palestinians and the Israelis and the Arabs. And again, the President preciate your leadership. today brought home to me how important We also talked about, of course, Iraq. that is. And I’m very delighted with that I expressed my strong belief that the Iraqi strong stand that you’ve always taken for elections must go forward on time. And a better . I appreciate His Majesty listening to my As you mentioned, sir, we talked about beliefs. And I assured His Majesty that the the future of Iraq, and we work very closely and my Government will be together to bring a transition in Iraq as involved with Middle Eastern peace and quickly as possible and a future for the that I believe that two states living side Iraqi people. And I tremendously appre- by side in peace, a Palestinian state and ciate the effort that you’ve given all of us an Israeli state, is necessary for there to and your vision for a better world for all be peace and that we have a moment, a of us in our part of the world. window of opportunity, and I intend to Thank you. work very closely with His Majesty to seize President Bush. Thank you, sir. Wel- that moment for the good of the Palestinian come. Appreciate you. Thank you. people and for the good of the Israelis, so that we can achieve peace that I know NOTE: The President spoke at 11:10 a.m. in is on your mind. the Oval Office at the White House.

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Letter to Congressional Leaders on the ‘‘Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004’’ December 6, 2004

Dear Leaders and Conferees: and the principle of battlefield unity of My most solemn duty is protecting the command must continue to be respected American people, and reforming and and in no way abrogated. These guidelines strengthening our Nation’s intelligence ca- will also honor my commitment to provide pabilities will help ensure the safety of our the Director of National Intelligence full country. I call on Congress to pass an intel- and meaningful budget authority over the ligence reform bill this week. An over- National Intelligence Program. This is crit- arching principle for these needed reforms ical to make certain that the intelligence has been to create a strong Director of community is more effectively managed. National Intelligence with full budget au- The guidelines will also help ensure that thority while preserving the chain of com- the Director of National Intelligence has mand within departments and agencies. We enhanced management authorities, includ- are very close to a significant achievement ing the ability to oversee and integrate all that will better protect our country for gen- the foreign and domestic activities of the erations to come, and now is the time to intelligence community, to achieve the finish the job for the good of our national unity of purpose needed to win the global security. Therefore, I want to reiterate my war on terrorism. views on some issues of concern to Mem- bers. With regard to other provisions in the When I met with the Congressional Bi- legislation, I want to congratulate the Con- partisan Leadership at the White House on ference for adopting important and time- September 8, 2004, I stated that the coun- sensitive law enforcement provisions that: try needed a strong Director of National • Strengthen current laws to make cer- Intelligence with full budget authority. At tain we can arrest those aiding terror- the same time, I have stated that we need ists, including those who have received a bill that respects the chain of command military- training in terror camps. within departments and agencies, including • Increase our ability to target terrorism the Department of Defense, so as to ensure financing. that all of the war-fighters’ needs will be • Ensure that dangerous terrorists are met. As Commander-in-Chief, it is ulti- lawfully detained while awaiting trial. mately my responsibility to ensure that both • Help prevent attacks by shoulder-fired of these goals are realized, and they are anti-aircraft missiles, known as captured in the attached formulation. MANPADs, and weapons of mass de- Accordingly, in developing implementing struction by mandating appropriate guidelines and regulations for this bill, it penalties. is my intention to ensure that the principles • of unity of command and authority are fully Provide authority to help stop ‘‘lone protected. It remains essential to preserve wolf’’ terrorists. in the heads of the executive departments • Expand our jurisdiction to prosecute the unity of authority over and account- those who seek weapons of mass de- ability for the performance of those depart- struction. ments. In particular, as we continue to • It is imperative that Congress act this prosecute the global war on terrorism, the week to guarantee these vital tools be- integrity of the military chain of command come part of our arsenal immediately.

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