Administration of Barack Obama, 2009 / Apr. 2

Statement on House of Representative Passage of the Fiscal Year 2010 Budget April 2, 2009

Tonight the House of Representatives took es, and government alike. And by making hard another step toward rebuilding our struggling choices and challenging the old ways of doing economy. This budget resolution embraces our business, we will cut in half the budget deficit most fundamental priorities: an energy plan we inherited within 4 years. With this vote that will end our dependence on foreign oil and comes an obligation to pursue our efforts to go spur a new clean energy economy, an education through the budget line by line, searching for system that will ensure our children will be able additional savings. Like the families we serve, to compete in the economy of the 21st century, we must cut the things we don’t need to invest and health care reform that finally confronts the in those we do. back-breaking costs plaguing families, business-

The President’s News Conference in London April 2, 2009

The President. Good afternoon, or good eve- Now, just keep in mind some historical con- ning; we’re running a little bit late. Earlier to- text. Faced with similar global challenges in the day, we finished a very productive summit that past, the world was slow to act, and people paid will be, I believe, a turning point in our pursuit an enormous price. That was true in the Great of global economic recovery. By any measure, Depression, when nations prolonged and wors- the London summit was historic. It was historic ened the crisis by turning inward, waiting for because of the size and the scope of the chal- more than a decade to meet the challenge to- lenges that we face and because of the timeli- gether. Even as recently as the 1980s, the slow ness and magnitude of our response. global response deepened and widened a debt The challenge is clear. The global economy is crisis in Latin America that pushed millions into contracting. Trade is shrinking. Unemploy- poverty. ment is rising. The international finance system Today, we’ve learned the lessons of history. I is nearly frozen. Even these facts can’t fully cap- know that in the days leading up to the summit, some of you in the press, some commentators, ture the crisis that we’re confronting, because confused honest and open debate with irrecon- behind them is the pain and uncertainty that so cilable differences. But after weeks of prepara- many people are facing. We see it back in the tion and 2 days of careful negotiation, we have United States. We see it here in London. We agreed on a series of unprecedented steps to re- see it around the world: families losing their store growth and prevent a crisis like this from homes, workers losing their jobs and their sav- happening again. ings, students who are deferring their dreams. Let me outline what I think has been most So many have lost so much. Just to underscore significant. this point, back in the United States, jobless Number one, we are committed to growth claims released today were the highest in 26 and job creation. All G–20 nations have acted to years. We owe it to all of our citizens to act and stimulate demand, which will total well over $2 to act with a sense of urgency. trillion in global fiscal expansion. The United In an age where our economies are linked States is also partnering with the private sector more closely than ever before, the whole world to clean out the troubled assets, the legacy has been touched by this devastating downturn. assets that are crippling some banks, and using And today the world’s leaders have responded the full force of the Government to ensure that with an unprecedented set of comprehensive our action leads directly to loans to businesses and coordinated actions. large and small, as well as individuals who

399 Apr. 2 / Administration of Barack Obama, 2009 depend on credit. And these efforts will be suffered greatly in this crisis. And the United amplified by our G–20 partners, who are States is ready to lead in this endeavor. In the pursuing similarly comprehensive programs. coming days, I intend to work with Congress And we also agreed on bold action to sup- to provide $448 million in immediate assis- port developing countries, so that we aren’t tance to vulnerable populations from Africa to faced with declining markets that the global Latin America and to double support for food economy depends on. Together, the G–20 is safety to over $1 billion so that we are giving tripling the IMF’s lending capacity and pro- people the tools they need to lift themselves moting lending by multilateral development out of poverty. We will also support the United banks to increase the purchasing power and Nations and World Bank as they coordinate expand markets in every country. the rapid assistance necessary to prevent hu- We’ve also rejected the protectionism that manitarian catastrophe. I have to say, though, could deepen this crisis. History tells us that that this is not just charity. These are all future turning inward can help turn a downturn into markets for all countries and future drivers of a depression. And this cooperation between world economic growth. the world’s leading economies signals our sup- Let me also underscore my appreciation to port for open markets, as does our multilateral Prime Minister Brown, his entire team, and all commitment to trade finance that will grow my colleagues from around the world who our exports and create new jobs. That’s all on contributed to the summit’s success. You the growth front. know, it’s hard for 20 heads of state to bridge And next, we made enormous strides in their differences. We’ve all got our own na- committing ourselves to comprehensive re- tional policies; we all have our own assump- form of a failed regulatory system. And togeth- tions, our own political cultures. But our citi- er, I believe that we must put an end to the zens are all hurting. They all need us to come bubble-and-bust economy that has stood in together. So I’m pleased that the G–20 has the way of sustained growth and enabled abu- agreed to meet again this fall, because I be- sive risk-taking that endangers our prosperity. lieve that this is just the beginning. Our prob- At home, back in the States, our efforts be- lems are not going to be solved in one meet- gan with an approach that Secretary Geithner ing; they’re not going to be solved in two proposed last week, the strongest regulatory meetings. We’re going to have to be proactive reforms any nation has contemplated so far to in shaping events and persistent in monitoring prevent the massive failure of responsibility our progress to determine whether further ac- that we have already seen. Today, these princi- tion is needed. ples have informed and enabled the coordinat- I also want to just make a few remarks about ed action that we will take with our G–20 part- additional meetings I had outside of the G–20 ners. context. While here in London, I had the op- To prevent future crises, we agreed to in- portunity to hold bilateral meetings with lead- creased transparency and capital protections ers of Russia, China, South Korea, Saudi Ara- for financial institutions. We’re extending su- bia, and India, as well as Great Britain. And pervision to all systemically important institu- these discussions were extraordinarily valuable tions, markets, and products, including hedge and productive. Of course, we spoke about ad- funds. We’ll identify jurisdictions that fail to ditional steps to promote economic recovery cooperate, including tax havens, and take ac- and growth. But we also discussed coordinated tion to defend our financial system. We will re- actions on a range of issues: how we could re- establish the Financial Stability Forum with a duce the nuclear threat; how we could forge a stronger mandate. And we will reform and ex- coordinated response to North Korea’s pand the IMF and World Bank so they are planned missile launch; how we can turn back more efficient, effective, and representative. terrorism and stabilize Afghanistan; how we Finally, we are protecting those who don’t can protect our planet from the scourge of cli- always have a voice at the G–20, but who have mate change. I’m encouraged that we laid the

400 Administration of Barack Obama, 2009 / Apr. 2 groundwork for real and lasting progress on a principles that we had developed prior to com- host of these issues. ing here. Ultimately, the challenges of the 21st century We felt that it was very important to can’t be met without collective action. Agree- strengthen our international financial institu- ment will almost never be easy, and results tions because developing countries, emerging won’t always come quickly. But I am committed markets are threatened. Even though they may to respecting different points of view and to not have been the cause of this crisis, they are forging a consensus instead of dictating our threatened by capital flight. They’re threatened terms. That’s how we made progress in the last by reduced trade finance, drops in consumer few days. And that’s how we will advance and demand in developed countries that were their uphold our ideals in the months and years to export markets, and so we knew that it was go- come. ing to be important to provide those countries You know, at home, I’ve often spoken about a with assistance. And we have created as funda- new era of responsibility. And I believe strongly mental a reworking of the resources available to that this era must not end at our borders. In a these international financial institutions as any- world that’s more and more interconnected, we thing we’ve done in the last several decades. all have responsibilities to work together to So overall, I’m pleased with the product. And solve common challenges. And although it will I’ll leave it to others to determine whether me take time, I am confident that we will rebuild and my team had anything to do with that. All global prosperity if we act with a common sense right? of purpose, persistence, and the optimism that Chuck Todd [NBC News]. Chuck. the moment demands. So I appreciate your attention, and I’m going Achievements of G–20 Summit to take a few questions. And I’ve got a list of a few people I’m going to call on, and then I Q. What concrete items that you got out of am—I will intersperse some folks I’m calling on this G–20 can you tell the American people randomly. back home who are hurting, the family strug- Helene Cooper [New York Times]. There gling, seeing their retirement go down, or wor- you are. rying about losing their job? What happened here today that helps that family back home in Effectiveness of G–20 Summit the heartland? The President. Well, as I said before, we’ve Q. Mr. President, you’ve had 2 days got a global economy, and if we’re taking ac- now—[inaudible]—on the world stage, how do tions in isolation in the United States, but those you think it’s going so far? And is there anything actions are contradicted overseas, then we’re about your performance over the past 2 days only going to be halfway effective, maybe not that made you cringe? even half. The President. Well, I think we did okay. You You’ve seen, for example, a drastic decline in know, when I came here, it was with the inten- U.S. exports over the last several months. You tion of listening and learning, but also providing look at a company like Caterpillar, in my home American leadership. And I think that the docu- State of Illinois, which up until last year was do- ment that has been produced as well as the con- ing extraordinarily well; in fact, export growth crete actions that will follow reflect a range of was what had sustained it even after the reces- our priorities. sion had begun. As a consequence of the world We wanted to make sure that we had a recession, as a consequence of the contagion strong, coordinated response to growth, and from the financial markets debilitating econo- that’s reflected in the document and in the ac- mies elsewhere, Caterpillar is now in very bad tions that will be taken. We thought it was im- shape. So if we want to get Caterpillar back on portant to make sure that we had a strong, coor- its feet, if we want to get all those export com- dinated regulatory response, and many of the panies back on their feet so that they are hiring, details of the regulatory response draw from putting people back to work, putting money in

401 Apr. 2 / Administration of Barack Obama, 2009 people’s pockets, we’ve got to make sure that or 20 years ago or 30 years ago, that you’d have the global economy as a whole is successful. the leaders of Germany, France, China, Rus- And this document, which affirms the need sia, Brazil, South Africa, a President of the for all countries to take fiscal responses that in- United States named Obama—[laugh- crease demand, that encourages the openness ter]—former adversaries, in some cases for- of markets, those are all going to be helpful in mer mortal enemies, negotiating this swiftly us being able to fix what ails the economy back on behalf of fixing the global economy, you home. All right. would have said that’s crazy. And yet it was Let me mix in a—Justin Webb, BBC [Brit- happening, and it happened with relatively lit- ish Broadcasting Corporation]. Where’s Jus- tle—relatively few hiccups. And I think that’s a tin? There he is. Go ahead. testimony to the great work that Gordon Brown did, and his team, in organizing the Compromise at G–20 Summit/Global Econom- summit, the collective work in our teams in ic Stabilization doing some good preparation, some good Q. Mr. President, in the spirit of openness, ground work. So I’m very proud of what’s been with which you say you’re—— done. The President. Why don’t you get a micro- This alone is not enough. And obviously, the phone? See, everybody is complaining. actions that each of us take in our individual [Laughter] I’m sure that’s all your fellow Brit- countries are still absolutely vital. So we have a ish journalists. [Laughter] set of principles, for example, around dealing Q. They’re extraordinarily well behaved, with systemic risk that I think will be very im- Mr. President. [Laughter] In the spirit of portant in preventing the kinds of financial cri- openness, with which you say you’re going to sis that we’ve seen. run your administration, could you give us an That does not entirely solve the problem of insight into an area or areas where you came to toxic assets that are still in U.S. banks and cer- London wanting something and you didn’t get tain British banks and certain European banks. it, where you compromised, where you gave And how each individual nation acts to deal something away to achieve the wider break- with that is still going to be vitally important. through agreement? How well we execute the respective stimulus The President. Well, I think that if you look programs around the world is going to be very at the language of the document, there are important. The quicker they are, the more ef- probably some areas where it wasn’t so much fective they are at actually boosting demand, of a sacrifice as it might not have been our the more all of us will benefit. The more en- number-one priority, but it became clear that cumbered they are by bureaucracy and mis- it was very important to certain other actors. management and corruption, that will hamper I’d rather not specify what those precise our development efforts as a whole. items would be, because this is a collective So this is not a panacea, but it is a critical document. But there’s no doubt that each step, and I think it lays the foundation so that, country has its own quirks and own particular issues that a leader may decide is really, really should the actions that we’ve taken individual- important, something that is nonnegotiable for ly and collectively so far not succeed in boost- them. And what we tried to do as much as pos- ing global demand and growth, should you sible was to accommodate those issues in a continue to see a freezing of credit or a hemor- way that did not hamper the effectiveness of rhaging of jobs around the world, I think we’ve the overall document to address what I think created a good foundation for this leadership are the core issues related to this crisis. to come back together again and take addition- Now, keep in mind, I think that this kind of al steps until we get it right. coordination really is historic. I said in the Okay, Michael Shear [Washington Post]. meeting that if you had imagined 10 years ago Where’s Michael? There you go.

402 Administration of Barack Obama, 2009 / Apr. 2

U.S. Foreign Policy tone internationally where people don’t—where they give us the benefit of the Q. Thank you, Mr. President. I wonder if you doubt. They’re still going to have their interests, view this trip that you’re on and the actions that and we’re going to have ours. There are going to you’ve taken here at the G–20 and with the bi- be tough negotiations, and sometimes we’re go- lateral meetings that you’ve had as representing ing to have to walk away from those negotia- a break from the foreign policy of your prede- tions if we can’t arrive at a common accord. cessor. And if so, could you describe where you There are going to be real dangers that can’t al- see and how you see the principles that guide a ways be talked through and have to be ad- different view of the world? dressed. But at least we can start with the no- The President. Well, you know, I didn’t ac- tion that we’re prepared to listen and to work company President Bush on his various sum- cooperatively with countries around the world. mits, so I don’t know how he was operating. All right, let me sprinkle in another—it’s got And I won’t warrant a guess on that. to be an international person. All right, this I can tell you that what I’ve tried to do since I young lady right there. started running for President, and since I was sworn in as President, is to communicate the Executive Compensation notion that America is a critical actor and leader Q. Mr. President, Emma Alberici from the on the world stage, and that we shouldn’t be Australian Broadcasting Corporation. At the embarrassed about that, but that we exercise moment, in the U.S., the U.K., and in Australia, our leadership best when we are listening; when executive salaries and bonuses are decided in we recognize that the world is a complicated the boardrooms of major publicly-listed compa- place and that we are going to have to act in nies. Who will be making those decisions on sal- partnership with other countries; when we lead aries and bonuses as a result of the agreement by example; when we show some element of you’ve made here today? And if it is still the humility and recognize that we may not always boards, will they be guided by principles or leg- have the best answer, but we can always en- islation? courage the best answer and support the best The President. The principles that we out- answer. lined, I think, put in place or move us in the di- So I think that’s the approach that we’ve tried rection of what I consider to be best practices, to take in our foreign policy since my adminis- which is that there is some accountability with tration came in. Now, we come in at extraordi- respect to executive compensation. narily challenging times, and yet I actually think Now, theoretically, that should be the share- that that calls for this type of leadership even holders. But the way that too many corporations more. But ultimately, we won’t know how effec- have operated for too long is that you have a tive we are until we look back a year from now CEO who basically selects his board; the board, or 2 years from now or 3 years from now and in a fairly cozy relationship oftentimes with the see if it worked. executive, hires a executive compensation firm, And what the American people care about, I which, surprisingly, tends to think that it’s nec- suspect, are the same thing that the British peo- essary to retain the best talent to pay people $20 ple care about, and that is, are you putting peo- or $30 million a year; and we get into the kinds ple back to work? Are businesses growing of habits and practices that I think have not again? Is business—is credit flowing again? been—have not served shareholders well, I And, you know—and that’s just true with re- think, ultimately, distort the decisionmaking of spect to this summit. But when it comes to our many CEOs. Afghanistan policy, the question is going to be, When I was in the United States Senate, I ac- have we made ourselves safer? Have we re- tually worked on a piece of legislation that duced the risks and incidents of terrorism? would make the simple proposition that execu- And so the proof of the pudding is in the eat- tive compensation should be subject to a share- ing. But hopefully, I think, at least we’ve set a holder vote, even if it was nonbinding, so that

403 Apr. 2 / Administration of Barack Obama, 2009 there was transparency and accountability and The President. In life there are no guaran- perhaps a shame function that would take tees, and economics there are no guarantees. place. And that principle, I think, is reflected The people who thought they could provide in these guidelines. guarantees, many of them worked at AIG, and What it says is, is that if you get sharehold- it didn’t work out so well. So there are always ers involved and those shareholders are given risks involved. a set of principles and best practices by which I have no doubt, though, that the steps that they can judge executive compensation, then have been taken are critical to preventing us you can still have outsized rewards and success sliding into a depression. They are bolder and for successful businesspeople, but it will be more rapid than any international response based on not short-term performance, not 3- that we’ve seen to a financial crisis in memory. month performance, not your ability to flip And I think that they will have a concrete ef- quick profits off products like derivatives that fect in our ability, individually, in each nation, don’t turn out to be particularly productive to to create jobs, save jobs that exist, grow the the company, but based on sustained, effective economy, loosen up credit, restore trust and growth. And that’s what’s embodied in these confidence in the financial markets. documents, and I think that you’re going to So these steps—another way of putting it is, see a lot of countries try to encourage that kind I think the steps in the communique were nec- of transparency and accountability. essary. Whether they’re sufficient, we’ve got to It doesn’t mean the state micromanag- wait and see. I’m actually confident, though, ing—— that given the common commitment in the United States and in the other G–20 countries [At this point, the President sneezed.] to act rapidly and boldly, that if we see other inklings of panic in the marketplace or things The President. Excuse me, I’ve been fight- unwinding, that this group, once again, will re- ing this all week. It doesn’t mean that we want spond as needed. the state dictating salaries; we don’t. We—I So I guess maybe just to use an analogy that strongly believe in a free-market system, and was used several times in this meeting, an as I think people understand in America, at analogy that I’ve used in the past: You’ve got a least, people don’t resent the rich; they want to sick patient; I think we applied the right medi- be rich. And that’s good. But we want to make cine. I think the patient is stabilized. There’s sure that there’s mechanisms in place that still wounds that have to heal, and there’s still holds people accountable and produces re- emergencies that could arise, but I think that sults. Okay? you’ve got some pretty good care being ap- Got to go back to my crew. Jake Tapper plied. [ABC News]. You had a second, followup question?

Effectiveness of G–20 Meeting Globalization

Q. Thank you, Mr. President. Two ques- Q. Prime Minister Brown saying—— tions. One, can you say with confidence that The President. Oh, the Washington consen- the steps the G–20 nations are taking to- sus. Well, the Washington consensus, as I’m day—committing to today will help the world sure you’re aware, Jake, is sort of a term of art or will prevent the world to avoid a depression about a certain set of policies surrounding glo- or a deeper recession? balization and the application of a cookie-cut- And two, your friend and ally, Prime Minis- ter model to economic growth—trade liberal- ter Brown, said that “the old Washington con- ization, deregulation—that was popular and sensus is over; today we have reached a new did help globalize and grow the economy and consensus.” Is he right? And what do you think was led by some of our leading economists and he meant by that? policymakers in Washington.

404 Administration of Barack Obama, 2009 / Apr. 2

I think that there’s always been a spectrum of The President. That’s always the danger of opinion about how unfettered the free market asking two questions. [Laughter] is. And along that spectrum, I think there have Q. First of all, you’ve had a very fruitful been some who believe in very fierce regulation meeting with our President. And during the and are very suspicious of globalization, and Clinton administration, U.S.-China relation- there are others who think that it’s always—that ship were characterized, in Clinton’s words, the market is always king. And I think what “strategic, constructive partnership.” During we’ve learned here—but if anybody had been the Bush era, it was—the catchphrase was studying history they would have understood quote-unquote, “stakeholder”—the Bush ad- earlier—is that the market is the most effective ministration expects China to become a respon- mechanism for creating wealth and distributing sible stakeholder in international affairs. Have resources to produce goods and services that you come up with a catchphrase of your own? history has ever known, but that it goes off the And certainly, it is not the G–2, is it? rails sometimes, that if it’s completely unregu- My second question is on behalf of the world. lated, that if there are no thoughtful frame- Politics is very local, even though we’ve been works to channel the creative energy of the talking about global solution, as indicated by market, that it can end up in a very bad place. your recent preference over American journal- And so, in that sense, I think that we just ists and British, which is okay. [Laughter] How went through a couple of decades where there can you make sure that you will do whatever was an artificial complacency about the dangers you can so that that local politics will not trump of markets going off the rails. And a crisis like or negatively affect good international econom- this reminds us that we just have to put in some ics? Thank you, Mr. President. commonsense rules of the road, without throw- The President. Well, those are excellent ing out the enormous benefits that globalization questions. On the first question, your American have brought in terms of improving living stan- counterparts will tell you I’m terrible with those dards, reducing the cost of goods, and bringing little catchphrases and sound bites. So I haven’t the world closer together. come up with anything catchy yet, but if you All right, I’ve got time for just a couple more have any suggestions, let me know. [Laughter] questions. I’m going to find a journalist I’ll be happy to use them. here—— In terms of local politics, look, I’m the Presi- dent of the United States. I’m not the president [Many reporters began speaking at the same of China; I’m not the president of Japan; I’m time.] not the president of the other participants here. And so I have a direct responsibility to my con- The President. [Laughter] All right. Here, stituents to make their lives better. That’s why I’m going to call on this gentleman right here. they put me in there. That accounts for some of He’s been very persistent. the questions here about how concretely does me being here help them find a job, pay for Balancing Domestic and Foreign Policy Priori- their home, send their kids to college, live what ties we call the American Dream. And I will be judged by my effectiveness in meeting their Q. Excuse me. Rui Chenggang of China Cen- needs and concerns. tral Television. Since the world leaders have But in an era of integration and interdepen- been talking about increasing the voice and vot- dence, it is also my responsibility to lead Ameri- ing rights of developing countries, I would like ca into recognizing that its interests, its fate is to ask two questions instead of just one. First tied up with the larger world; that if we neglect one, on behalf of China—— or abandon those who are suffering in poverty, The President. I may choose which one I that not only are we depriving ourselves of po- want to answer. [Laughter] tential opportunities for markets and economic Q. Of course. growth, but, ultimately, that despair may turn to

405 Apr. 2 / Administration of Barack Obama, 2009 violence that turns on us; that unless we are of during the campaign. And specifically, is the concerned about the education of all children declaration of the end of the Washington con- and not just our children, not only may we be sensus evidence of the diminished authority depriving ourselves of the next great scientist that you feared was out there? who’s going to find the next new energy source The President. Well, first of all, during the that saves the planet, but we also may make campaign I did not say that some of that loss of people around the world much more vulnera- authority was inevitable. I said it was traced to ble to anti-American propaganda. very specific decisions that the previous ad- So if I’m effective as America’s President ministration had made that I believed had low- right now, part of that effectiveness involves ered our standing in the world. And that holding a—providing Americans insight into wasn’t simply my opinion; that was, it turns how their self-interest is tied up with yours. out, the opinion of many people around the And that’s an ongoing project because it’s not world. always obvious. I would like to think that with my election And there are going to be times where and the early decisions that we’ve made, that short-term interests are going to dif- you’re starting to see some restoration of fer—there’s no doubt about it—and protec- America’s standing in the world. And al- tionism is the classic example. You can make though, as you know, I always mistrust polls, arguments that if you can get away with pro- international polls seem to indicate that you’re tecting your markets, as long as the other folks seeing people more hopeful about America’s don’t protect theirs, then in the short term you leadership. may benefit. And it then becomes important Now, we remain the largest economy in the not only for me to try to give people a sense of world by a pretty significant margin. We re- why, over the long term, that’s counterproduc- main the most powerful military on Earth. Our tive, but also it becomes important for me to production of culture, our politics, our media put policies in place in the United States that still have—I didn’t mean to say that with such provide a cushion, provide support for those scorn, guys—[laughter]—you know I’m teas- people who may suffer local dislocations be- ing—still has enormous influence. And so I do cause of globalization. And that’s something not buy into the notion that America can’t lead that I think every government has to think in the world. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t about. think that we had important things to contrib- There are individuals who will be harmed ute. by a trade deal. There are businesses who will go out of business because of free trade. And I just think in a world that is as complex as it to the extent that a government is not there to is, that it is very important for us to be able to help them reshape their company or retrain forge partnerships as opposed to simply dictat- for the new jobs that are being created, over ing solutions. Just a—just to try to crystallize time, you’re going to get people who the example, there’s been a lot of comparison see—who rightly see their personal self-inter- here about Bretton Woods—“oh, well, last est in very narrow terms. Okay? time you saw the entire international architec- Two more questions. Jonathan Weisman ture being remade.” Well, if it’s just Roosevelt [Wall Street Journal]. and Churchill sitting in a room with a brandy, that’s an easier negotiation. [Laughter] But U.S. Global Influence that’s not the world we live in, and it shouldn’t be the world that we live in. Q. Thank you, Mr. President. During the And so that’s not a loss for America; it’s an campaign you often spoke of a diminished appreciation that Europe is now rebuilt and a power and authority of the United States over powerhouse; Japan is rebuilt, is a powerhouse; the last decade. This is your first time in an in- China, India—these are all countries on the ternational summit like this, and I’m wonder- move. And that’s good; that means there are ing what evidence you saw of what you spoke millions of people—billions of people—who

406 Administration of Barack Obama, 2009 / Apr. 2 are working their way out of poverty. And over extraordinary economic growth that is a marvel, time, that potentially makes this a much more I think, for all the world. peaceful world. We did discuss the issue of terrorism. And And that’s the kind of leadership we need to we discussed it not simply in terms of terrorism show, one that helps guide that process of or- emanating from Pakistan, although, obviously, derly integration without taking our eyes off the we are very concerned about extremists and ter- fact that it’s only as good as the benefits of indi- rorists who have made camp in the border re- vidual families, individual children. Is it giving gions of Pakistan as well as in Afghanistan. But them more opportunity? Is it giving them a bet- we spoke about it more broadly in terms of how ter life? If we judge ourselves by those stan- we can coordinate effectively on issues of coun- dards, then I think America can continue to terterrorism. show leadership for a very long time. I’m going to call one foreigner—[laugh- We also spoke about the fact that in a nuclear ter]—actually, I’m the foreigner. That’s why I age, at a time when perhaps the greatest enemy smiled. One correspondent not from America, of both India and Pakistan should be poverty, and then I will—— that it may make sense to create a more effec- tive dialog between India and Pakistan. But ob- [Many reporters began speaking at the same viously, we didn’t go in depth into those issues. time.] We talked about a whole range of other is- sues related to, for example, energy, and how The President. We’re not doing bidding here. important it is for the United States to lead by [Laughter] Come on. But I also want to make example in reducing our carbon footprint so sure that I’m not showing gender bias. So this that we can help to forge agreements with young lady right here; not you, sir, I’m sorry. countries like China and India that, on a per capita basis, have a much smaller footprint and India and Pakistan so justifiably chafe at the idea that they should have to sacrifice their development for our ef- Q. Hi, Mr. President. forts to control climate change, but also ac- The President. How are you? knowledging that if China and India, with their Q. Thank you for choosing me. I’m very well. populations, had the same energy usage as the I’m Simrat from the Times of India. average American, then we would have all melt- The President. Wonderful. ed by now. Q. You met with our Prime Minister, Man- mohan Singh. What did you—what is America And so that was a very interesting conversa- doing to help India tackle terrorism emanating tion that I will be pursuing not just with India, from Pakistan? but, hopefully, with China and with other coun- The President. Well, first of all, your Prime tries around the world. In some ways our Euro- Minister is a wonderful man. pean counterparts have moved more quickly Q. Thank you. I agree. [Laughter] than we have on this issue. But I think even the The President. Well—— Europeans have recognized that it’s not easy. Q. I agree. It’s even harder during times of economic The President. Did you have something to do downturn. with that, or—[laughter]. You seem to kind of And so we’re going to have to combine the take credit for it a little bit there. [Laughter] low-hanging fruit of energy efficiency with rap- Q. I’m just really proud of him, sir. id technological advances. And to the extent The President. Of course. You should be that in some cases we can get international co- proud of him. I’m teasing you. operation and pool our scientific and technical I think he’s a very wise and decent man and knowledge around things like developing coal has done a wonderful job in guiding India, even sequestration, for example, that can be ex- prior to being Prime Minister, along a path of tremely helpful. Okay?

407 Apr. 2 / Administration of Barack Obama, 2009

I’m going to call on my last American corre- Now, I think that part of the reason people spondent, Chip [Chip Reid, CBS News]. And, didn’t give me too hard a time is because if you Chip, my heart goes out to you. look at European banks or Asian banks, that they’ve had their own issues both in the past U.S. Role in the Global Economic Situation and in the future. And I think there was a very constructive discussion about the fact that, giv- Q. Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. en global financial flows, that unless we’ve got President. I appreciate that. much more effective coordinated regulatory The President. Yes. I just heard about that. strategies, supervision, standards, that these Q. Certainly there is a lot of sentiment in problems will appear again. G–20 countries that the United States was a Money is—can move around the globe in a major cause of the global economic meltdown. second. And it will seek out the highest re- To what degree did that topic come up in your turns, and if those highest returns end up be- discussions? Did it make it difficult for some ing built on a house of cards, then we’re going countries to accept advice from the United to be seeing another threat to the world finan- States when they blame the United States and cial system wherever that house of cards might its economic system for causing this in the first be. place? And how do you respond to people who do blame America? And so, overall, I think there was an extraor- The President. Well, you know, I don’t think dinarily constructive approach among all the that—I think my colleagues in the G–20 were leaders. I was very impressed with them. I’m extraordinarily gracious about my participa- very grateful to them. And I’m excited about tion. I think that they continue to express the the ability not just to help heal this economy desire to work with America, admiration about but also to make progress on a sustainable many things American. There were occasional model of economic growth that relies less on a comments, usually wedged into some other cycle of bubble and bust, something that I’ve topic, that indicated from their perspective spoken about back home. that this started in America, or this started on All right? Thank you, everybody. Appreciate Wall Street, or this started with particular it. banks or companies. Perhaps what helped was my willingness to NOTE: The President’s news conference began acknowledge that—and it’s hard to deny—that at 6:44 p.m. at the ExCeL centre. In his re- some of this contagion did start on Wall Street. marks, the President referred to Secretary of And as I’ve said back home, as I’ve said in pub- the Treasury Timothy F. Geithner; Prime lic, and as I would say in private, we had a Minister Gordon Brown of the United King- number of firms that took wild and unjustified dom; President Dmitry A. Medvedev of Rus- risks; we had regulators that were asleep at the sia; President Hu Jintao of China; President switch. And it has taken an enormous toll on Lee Myung-bak of South Korea; and King Ab- the U.S. economy and has spread to the world dallah bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud of Saudi Ara- economy. bia.

Message to the Senate Transmitting an Annex to the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty April 2, 2009

To the Senate of the United States: herewith Annex VI on Liability Arising From Environmental Emergencies to the Protocol With a view to receiving the advice and con- on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic sent of the Senate to ratification, I transmit Treaty (Annex VI), adopted on June 14, 2005,

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