Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents

Monday, July 16, 2007 Volume 43—Number 28 Pages 913–962

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Addresses and Remarks Communications to Federal Agencies— James S. Brady Press Briefing Room Continued renovation, ribbon-cutting ceremony—938 Waiver of Limitation on Obligation and Office of Management and Budget Expenditure of $642.5 Million in Fiscal Mid-Session Review—939 Year 2007 Economic Support Funds for Ohio Iraq, memorandum—957 GrafTech International Ltd. in Parma—920 Greater Cleveland Partnership and a Interviews With the News Media question-and-answer session in Cleveland—920 Exchange with reporters in the James S. Provincial Reconstruction Team leaders and Brady Press Briefing Room—938 brigade combat commanders, briefing—958 News conference, July 12—944 Radio address—913 Virginia, White House Conference on the Proclamations Americas in Arlington—914 Captive Nations Week—937 Communications to Congress Death of Lady Bird Johnson—943 Initial Benchmark Assessment Report, Parents’ Day—956 message transmitting—957 International Convention for the Suppression Statements by the President of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, message Death of Lady Bird Johnson—943 transmitting—958 Communications to Federal Agencies Supplementary Materials Presidential Determination on Transfer of Acts approved by the President—962 Economic Support Funds to the Overseas Checklist of White House press releases—961 Private Investment Corporation To Digest of other White House Establish a Loan Guarantee Program, announcements—959 memorandum—938 Nominations submitted to the Senate—960

WEEKLY COMPILATION OF Distribution is made only by the Superintendent of Docu- ments, Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents will be furnished by mail to domestic subscribers for $80.00 per year Published every Monday by the Office of the Federal Reg- ($137.00 for mailing first class) and to foreign subscribers for ister, National Archives and Records Administration, Washing- $93.75 per year, payable to the Superintendent of Documents, ton, DC 20408, the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Docu- Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. The ments contains statements, messages, and other Presidential charge for a single copy is $3.00 ($3.75 for foreign mailing). materials released by the White House during the preceding The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents is also week. available on the Internet on the GPO Access service at http:// The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents is pub- www.gpoaccess.gov/wcomp/index.html. lished pursuant to the authority contained in the Federal Reg- There are no restrictions on the republication of material ister Act (49 Stat. 500, as amended; 44 U.S.C. Ch. 15), under appearing in the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Docu- regulations prescribed by the Administrative Committee of the ments. Federal Register, approved by the President (37 FR 23607; 1 CFR Part 10).

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The President’s Radio Address taxes and spending restraint, the economy July 7, 2007 grows, tax revenues go up, and the deficit goes down. Good morning. This week, we received Democratic leaders in Congress want to more good news showing that our economy take our country down a different track. They is strong and growing. Department of Labor are working to bring back the failed tax-and- reports that our economy has now created spend policies of the past. The Democrats’ jobs for 46 consecutive months. America budget plan proposes $205 billion in addi- added 132,000 jobs in June, and that means tional domestic spending over the next 5 our economy has added more than 8.2 mil- years and includes the largest tax increase lion new jobs since August of 2003. Unem- in history. No nation has ever taxed and spent ployment is low; consumer confidence is its way to prosperity. And I have made it high; incomes are rising; and opportunity is clear that I will veto any attempt to take growing across America. America down this road. Our Nation’s strong economy is no acci- dent. It is the result of the hard work of the Democrats in Congress are also behind American people and progrowth policies in schedule passing the individual spending bills Washington. Starting in 2001, my administra- needed to keep the Federal Government tion delivered the largest tax relief since Ron- running. At their current pace, I will not see ald Reagan was in the White House. Our tax a single one of the 12 must-pass bills before relief has left $1.1 trillion in the hands of Congress leaves Washington for the month- citizens like you to save and spend and invest long August recess. The fiscal year ends Sep- as you see fit. tember 30th. By failing to do the work nec- Over the past 3 years, we have also held essary to pass these important bills by the the growth of annual domestic spending end of the fiscal year, Democrats are failing close to 1 percent, well below the rate of in their responsibility to make tough deci- inflation. The result is a thriving and resilient sions and spend the people’s money wisely. economy that is the envy of the world. This moment is a test. Under our Constitu- Over the past 6 years, our economy has tion, Congress holds the power of the purse. overcome serious challenges: a stock market Democratic leaders are in control of Con- decline; recession; corporate scandals; an at- gress. They set the schedule for when bills tack on our homeland; and the demands of are considered. They determine when votes an ongoing war on terror. Despite these ob- are held. Democrats have a chance to prove stacles, our economy recovered, and tax reve- nues soared, and America is now in a position they are for open and transparent govern- to balance the Federal budget. To achieve ment by working to complete each spending this goal, I sent Congress a budget plan this bill independently and on time. I urge February that would keep taxes low, restrain Democrats in Congress to step forward now Federal spending, and put us in surplus by and pass these bills one at a time. 2012. As they do, I will insist they restrain spend- Next week, my administration will release ing so we can keep our Government running, a report called the Mid-Session Review, while sustaining our growing economy and which will provide you with an update on getting our budget into balance. And to help our Nation’s progress in meeting the goal of achieve these goals, I call on the Senate to a balanced budget. We know from experi- act on my nomination of Jim Nussle as Direc- ence that when we pursue policies of low tor of the Office of Management and Budget. 913

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Jim is a former chairman of the House Budg- I do thank members of my administration et Committee, and he will be a strong advo- who have joined us. I understand after this cate for protecting your tax dollars here in event there’s going to be a series of breakout Washington. groups, led by members of my Cabinet— By setting clear budget priorities and Hank Paulson is here, the Secretary of the maintaining strong fiscal discipline, we can Treasury. As a matter of fact, he’s heading promote economic growth and bring our down to, I think, Brazil tomorrow. Secretary budget into balance. Our Nation has the Carlos Gutierrez, Secretary of Commerce, most innovative, industrious, and talented will be leading a group. Mike Leavitt will lead people on the face of the Earth. And when a breakout session—he’s the Secretary of we unleash the entrepreneurial spirit of our Health and Human Services; and then Mar- country, there is no limit to what the Amer- garet Spellings, who is the Secretary of Edu- ican people can achieve or the hope and op- cation. I think you’re going to find these folks portunity we can pass on to future genera- to be concerned, compassionate Americans tions. who care about the lives of our citizens in Thank you for listening. our neighborhood. And I appreciate them, certainly. NOTE: The address was recorded at 7 a.m. on And then you get a speech from my wife, July 6 in the Roosevelt Room at the White House which is, like, really smart to have her speak. for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on July 7. The tran- [Laughter] You’re stuck with the B team script was made available by the Office of the Press Secretary on June 6 but was embargoed for right now, and then the A team will be com- release until the broadcast. The Office of the Press ing for—[laughter]. Secretary also released a Spanish language tran- I want to thank all the folks who have script of this address. joined us. Thanks for coming. As you can see, we’ve got an interesting way of making a vari- ety of points. What I hope to accomplish at Remarks to the White House this breakout session is to, first, explain to Conference on the Americas in our fellow citizens how important it is that Arlington, Virginia the United States be active in the neighbor- July 9, 2007 hood in which we live. Secondly—and, by the way, thanks, am- The President. Thank you all. Please be bassadors, for coming. I appreciate you all seated. Thanks for coming today. In my re- being here. It’s very kind of you to take time cent trip down to Central and South Amer- out of your busy schedules to be here. We’re ica, I told the folks that we were going to honored you’re here. Secondly, it’s important host a conference here in Washington, a con- for us—for me to explain to our fellow citi- ference to promote best practices, which zens some of the work we’re doing in the really says, how best can the United States neighborhood. I think our citizens will be help people in our neighborhood. pleased to know, for example, that we’re Laura and I had a magnificent trip to Cen- working very hard to get trade agreements tral and South America. It reminded me of through our Congress, because the best way the importance of having a peaceful and to help defeat poverty is to encourage com- prosperous neighborhood. It’s in our inter- merce and trade. ests, in the interests of the United States that We’ve got trade agreements we’ve reached our neighborhood be healthy and educated. with Peru and Panama and Colombia. It’s And so this conference is an attempt to bring really important for the United States Con- together key people of my administration and gress to pass these trade agreements. If faith-based groups and private sector groups you’re interested in prosperity in our neigh- from the United States, as well as our neigh- borhood, if you want to help improve the borhood, to discuss how we can work to- lives of others, then the United States Con- gether to promote social justice, to help peo- gress must honor the agreements we’ve ne- ple realize a better life through good edu- gotiated with these important countries and cation and good health care. pass this legislation.

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I’d like to see the Peruvian deal done by best can the United States and faith-based the beginning of August. They’ve got time groups and private groups and NGOs work to get the bill done. Members of Congress collaboratively to achieve important objec- have got ample days on the calendar to pass tives. this important piece of legislation so we can A third objective is education. As I men- send the clear signal to our neighborhood tioned, Margaret Spellings will be here. She’s that we want you to be prosperous; that we the Secretary of Education. But the United want to help you realize your potential States is deeply involved in people-to-people through trade with the United States of projects, all aimed at improving literacy. We America. Trade agreements are good for believe strongly in helping teachers teach, both sides—it’s good for U.S. workers, and and therefore, teacher schools make a lot of it’s good for Peruvian, Colombian, or Pan- sense. But the purpose of the groups today— amanian workers. And it’s in our interest to of this meeting today is to help us better promote trade. focus our resources and do a better job of Secondly, we’re doing a lot to promote helping people in our neighborhood realize health. One symbol of our commitment is a Navy medical ship called the Comfort that their potential. is traveling the region but, more importantly, I happen to be a person who does believe is providing basic and sophisticated health in an Almighty, and I believe the Almighty care to people in need. I mean, the United implants in each soul great human potential. States, we’re strong, no question about it, but And it’s in our interest to help people realize our greatest strength is our hearts. Tenemos their full potential. And two ways to do so— corazones grandes aqui en este pais. We care and two practical ways to do so is for the deeply about the plight of other people, and United States to be involved in health issues when we see their suffering, we want to help. as well as education issues, and we are. And And the Comfort is a way for us to send a we’re spending a fair amount of taxpayers’ clear message that we care about the people monies to achieve those objectives. And so that live in the neighborhood that we occupy one of my objectives is to explain to the together. American people, it’s in your interest to help You know, Laura and I had an amazing people in our neighborhood become better experience in Guatemala. That’s Maria’s educated, and it’s in your interest that we country. We went to the highlands. We first help people get good health care because a saw a small-business guy, who was formerly healthy and educated and prosperous neigh- a subsistence farmer who put together a co- borhood is in the long-term interests of the operative of fellow farmers that now have got United States. access to the U.S. markets, and they’re mak- It is also in our interest to help a neighbor ing a living. The most important thing was, in need. It renews our soul. It lifts our collec- he said, ‘‘I’m saving money so my child can tive spirit. I believe to whom much is given, get a higher education.’’ much is required. We’ve been given a lot as But we also went to an outpost where the a nation, and therefore, I believe we’re re- U.S. military was providing basic health care quired to help—help people realize their po- for people. Now, we’ve expanded on that health care initiative by setting up a nurse’s tential. training center in Panama. That’s what So that’s why I’ve come. I’ve also come Leavitt will be discussing, Secretary Leavitt. to hear some of the folks on our panel. You’re The reason I bring this up is that we under- probably glad I’m about to quit talking so stand how important it is for people to have you can hear some of the folks on the panel good health. We understand that a healthy too. We’re going to start with Shannon. He’s society is one that will—is one in which peo- worked for me at the NSC in the White ple will be more likely to realize their full House, now is at the State Department. He God-given potential. And we want to help, is the main guy when it comes to South and and we want to be involved. And part of our Latin America—I don’t know if that’s a diplo- discussions today will be how best to—how matic term, ‘‘main guy,’’ or not. [Laughter]

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Assistant Secretary of State for the The President. Si. [Laughter] Western Hemisphere Tom Shannon. It Ms. Pacheco. It’s a Mayan word. [Laugh- works for me, sir. ter] The President. That’s right. Welcome. The President. You started it when, in [At this point, Assistant Secretary Shannon 2001? made brief remarks.] Ms. Pacheco. In 2004. The President. Yes, thank you, Thomas. The President. In 2004, good. How many Before I call on Maria, I do want to say members? something about our expectations, and that Ms. Pacheco. We have—well, there’s 22 is, we expect governments to be of and by people in the company, but we’re working and for the people. We don’t—and we expect now with more than a thousand women in governments to be honest and transparent Guatemala from different regions. and open. We reject the notion that it’s okay The President. Yes. So, lesson one, by the for there to be corruption in government. We way, there is such thing as social entre- really believe that open, transparent societies preneurs. It is somebody who says, ‘‘I’m are those that lead to hopeful tomorrows. going to help somebody else,’’ and takes And so part of our foreign policy—for ex- time, talent, energy, and as a result, you’re ample, through the Millennium Challenge affecting a thousand lives—a thousand pri- Account—is to set expectations, expectations mary interfaces, which affects, no telling, that most people want: the expectation of a how many lives. government that invests in the health and education of her people; the expectation that One of the messages, I hope, that comes there will be no corruption, that there will out of this meeting is that you can make a be transparency, that people will be able to difference. It doesn’t take much. And as a express themselves in an open forum without matter of fact, societies change one heart at fear of reprisal. a time, and therefore, if you’re one of those And so, no question we want to be in- persons changing hearts, you’re part of soci- volved on the people-to-people programs, etal change for the better. but we also have the objective of enhancing And so I hope that we can inspire our fel- good government as well, which we believe low citizens to become involved with the strongly will lead to more hopeful futures. NGOs or the faith-based groups or the com- Anyway, Maria is here. Where are you munity-based groups, all helping our neigh- from, Maria? borhood, and hopefully inspire people, like Maria Pacheco. I’m from Guatemala. in Guatemala, to step up and do the same The President. Que bueno. Bienvenidos. thing that Maria has done. Ms. Pacheco. Muchas gracias. The President. And so what do you do So, are you pretty upbeat? Optimistic? for a living? Pessimistic? Tell me how you’re looking these days. [Ms. Pacheco, founder and general manager, Kiej de los Bosques, S.A., made brief re- [Ms. Pacheco made further remarks.] marks.] The President. I appreciate it. Look, it’s The President. Por favor. You speak in very important for my fellow citizens to un- English, and I’ll speak in Spanish. [Laughter] Ms. Pacheco. Bueno. Esta bien. derstand that when we open up markets in The President. Except I’ll ruin the lan- a fair way—in other words, we treat our pro- guage, and you won’t. [Laughter] ducers the same as producers in other coun- tries—it benefits us. It particularly helps lift [Ms. Pacheco made further remarks.] people out of poverty. And that’s what we The President. Let me ask you a question. want. We want people prosperous in your So, you started this group initially to—what’s neighborhood. If you’re living in a neighbor- the name of it? hood, you want there to be prosperity in your Ms. Pacheco. Kiej de los Bosques. neighborhood. So I appreciate you bringing

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up the importance of markets and pro- The President. So what happens if some- viding—giving people just a basic opportuni- body wanted to become a teacher for the ties in life, and it will make it—it’s a trans- summer or wanted to take a trip, and part forming strategy. And so thanks for coming. of the experience of the trip was to make Maria, it says here you’re an organic farm- an impact on somebody’s life? Can they find er. that kind of program on your web site? Ms. Pacheco. Yes, I was an organic farmer [Mr. Clausen made further remarks.] for 12 years. The President. What were you farming? The President. And so is there a common web site? Do we have a web site, for exam- Ms. Pacheco. I was farming vegetables. ple, as a result of the meeting? I might ask The President. Vegetables, yes. I’m not my friend Karen Hughes to think about this. big on vegetables, but thanks. [Laughter] She probably has already thought about it, Ms. Pacheco. Broccoli especially. [Laugh- knowing her—and that is to think maybe ter] about a listing of different ways our fellow The President. Don’t tell my mother that. citizens can get involved in helping different But thank you very much for coming. programs, either financially or through time Ms. Pacheco. Thank you, Mr. President. and effort. Maybe we ought to think about The President. Yes, I appreciate your that. I know you already have. time. Good, thanks. Anything else you want to Matthew, what do you do? say, Matthew, while you’ve got the floor Matthew N. Clausen. I work for Partners here? of the Americas. Mr. Clausen. Well, I can’t pass up that The President. And what is that? opportunity. Mr. Clausen. Partners of the Americas is The President. Here’s your chance, man. an organization—we’ve been around for over [Laughter] 40 years now, and we connect people with [Mr. Clausen made further remarks.] other people in our hemisphere. The President. Really. What does that The President. Thank you. A healthy soci- mean, connect people with other people? ety is one in which people are responsible Mr. Clausen. It means we have volunteer for their behaviors. A healthy capitalist soci- groups in almost every State of the U.S. that ety is one in which corporate America, in this are partnered with similar groups in almost case, is responsible for—becomes a respon- every country in the region. sible citizen. And we have got such a soul The President. That’s great. here in Vivian Alegria. She is from Mexico. Vivian Alegria. Yes. [Mr. Clausen, vice president for partnership The President. Welcome. You work for? development, Partners of the Americas, made Ms. Alegria. For the Coca-Cola Founda- brief remarks.] tion in Mexico. The President. Coca-Cola Foundation. The President. So are you looking for vol- And what does the Coca-Cola Foundation unteers? do? Mr. Clausen. We are always looking for volunteers. [Ms. Alegria, director, Coca-Cola Founda- The President. And how would one who tion, Mexico, made brief remarks.] might be interested in volunteering find in- The President. So you’re building formation about ways to help? Do you have schools? a web site, for example? [Ms. Alegria made further remarks.] Mr. Clausen. We do. We have part- ners.net, is a great place to start. The President. I think one of the things The President. Partners.net. What would that our citizens have got to understand here, one find there? there’s a lot of corporate America that are very much involved in the communities, of [Mr. Clausen made further remarks.] which they’re active. And that’s important.

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And I would encourage our companies that The President. No, it’s great, believe me. do business in the neighborhood to under- [Laughter] Isn’t it? Yes. [Laughter] stand that it’s one thing to sell a product, [Mr. Dimenstein, founder and academic di- it’s another thing to help people be able to rector, Associacao Cidade Escola Aprendiz, buy the product and become involved in the made brief remarks, concluding as follows.] communities in which they’re doing business. And I’m confident a lot of our companies Mr. Dimenstein. And then the almost last are. I know Microsoft, for example, is very 20 years, I’ve been writing about violence much involved with education programs. against kids and the lessons in Brazil—— Laura and I are working on a very important The President. Thank you. Thank you. initiative to help eradicate malaria in parts [Mr. Dimenstein made further remarks.] of the world, and corporate America is help- The President. Fantastic. And when you ing there too. So for those of you who rep- say countrywide, first, you’ve got a big coun- resent corporate America, thanks for coming, try. This will be promoted by the Federal and thanks for being involved. Government in cooperation with the pri- And if you’re not, get involved. It will not vate—with your group—— only help your business, it will help your country, because I want to keep saying this [Mr. Dimenstein made further remarks, con- over and over again, an objective of our coun- cluding as follows.] try and this Government is for there to be Mr. Dimenstein. And we’ve learned that a healthy, educated, and prosperous neigh- when we put people together, it’s very easy borhood. It’s in our interests. America does to make the education improve. One in- better when people in the neighborhood in stance, we create one model, the neighbor- which we live are feeling better, can read hood that I live because I believe if you want better, and are making more money. Pros- to change the world, first try to change your perity is—and health and education are just neighborhood. essential to a peaceful community around us. The President. That’s right. Anyway, so thanks for coming, Vivian. It’s [Mr. Dimenstein made further remarks.] good to see you. Gilberto. You are from Brazil. Great coun- The President. So part of the purpose of try. this gathering is to analyze best practices. Gilberto Dimenstein. Great country. And by that I mean what works. Gilberto has Great, great country. just described a program that works, and hopefully somebody will be inspired by this The President. I’m proud to report that idea and try it out in another part of our relations with Brazil are improving a lot. I’ve neighborhood. got a very close relationship with President And so I appreciate you coming. Thanks Lula; we’ve worked hard to make it that way. for bring something that—— And one of the interesting initiatives we’re Mr. Dimenstein. Thank you very much working on is a alternative fuel initiative, for the invitation. where the United States and Brazil can work The President. You’re not only a social and share technologies, not only between our entrepreneur, you’re an educational entre- two countries but in the neighborhood, so preneur. And we appreciate your vision and that we can all become less dependent on your hard work to make your country a better oil. place. And anyway so relations are good. And so, An individual can make a significant dif- what do you do for a living, Gilberto? ference in the life—in somebody else’s life. Mr. Dimenstein. So, I’m a journalist. And when you can motivate and encourage The President. A journalist? That’s good. millions of individuals to make a difference [Laughter] in somebody’s life, then the impact becomes Mr. Dimenstein. Very good? pretty profound. And here’s an example of The President. Yes. one fellow who is working hard to improve Mr. Dimenstein. Or not very good? his country. Thanks for coming.

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Dr. Marie. How are you, Doc? mother-to-child transmission—programs Marie Marcelle Deschamps. I’m doing that prevent that transmission of AIDS. fine, thank you. It’s an honor to be here. So, good going. The President. What kind of doctor are Dr. Deschamps. Thank you. Thank you. you? The President. Yes. You upbeat? You feeling all right about things? [Dr. Deschamps, technical director, Haitan [Dr. Deschamps made further remarks.] Study Group on Kaposi’s Sarcoma and Op- portunistic Infections, made brief remarks.] The President. That’s one thing that Sec- retary Paulson’s going to discuss in the break- The President. So she’s from Haiti, obvi- out session that he is going to be leading, ously. She’s a doc. She’s deeply concerned and that is, our view of the importance of about HIV/AIDS and malaria. microloans—microcredit, as a way to help You know, our Government and the peo- people, again, help themselves and realize ple—the generosity of the Americans, Amer- their potential. So thanks for coming. ican people can be—as manifested by just Dr. Deschamps. Thank you. money, spending money. Up to now we have The President. Glad you’re here. talked about how American citizens spend Dr. Deschamps. Thank you. time and effort to help improve lives. We The President. Our last panelist is John also spend money. And this is an area where Howe, formerly of the great State of Texas. I feel very strongly that America should be Once a Texan, always a Texan, John. [Laugh- involved and make a difference, and that is ter] He is the president and CEO of Project fighting the pandemic of HIV/AIDS and HOPE. Why don’t you explain what that is dealing with malaria. and tell us what you’re doing. And so, to this end, I’m asking Congress [John P. Howe III, made brief remarks, con- for $30 billion expenditure over the next 5 cluding as follows.] years. She mentioned PEPFAR. That’s, like, initials for the AIDS initiative, and we’re Dr. Howe. We’re legally chartered here making a big difference. in Washington as the People-to-People The reason I bring this up again is that— Foundation, doing business as Project HOPE. I’m not bragging, I’m just telling the Amer- The President. Good. ican taxpayer that through your hard work and your tax dollars, we’re helping programs [Dr. Howe made further remarks.] like Maria’s that are saving lives. We can The President. Thanks, John. You know, measure the lives being saved. We can meas- it’s interesting, our country has got certain ure the amount of antiretroviral drugs ending images that—some are true, some aren’t up in people’s systems. We can measure how true. And it’s very important, as part of our many different groups there are involved. diplomacy, diplomatic effort on behalf of the This is an area, for example, where the faith- American citizens, to remind people about based community has made a significant dif- some of the great generous acts that our citi- ference, not only in our own hemisphere but zens are doing. And they do it out of the in other affected countries as well. goodness of their hearts. There’s nothing bet- Maria mentioned that it’s amazing what ter than being a volunteer. It’s probably one happens when they start networking; when of the great acts of kindness that somebody one group attracts another group, that at- can do, is to volunteer to save somebody’s tracts another group, and all of a sudden, life or just to add a little love in somebody’s there’s a grassroots organization in place to heart. deal with this terrible pandemic. And we’ve got millions of our citizens who And so I want to thank you for going back do that on a daily basis here at home. And to your country, for lending your skills to help it’s in our interest that citizens who so want solve a significant problem that can be—that to can do that outside, in our neighborhood. at least, we can arrest the race. At least we And part of the purpose of having this gath- can help—and we save children through the ering today is to remind our citizens of that

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which we’re doing and to call upon our citi- We’ve—as part of the hydrogen fuel cell ini- zens, if they’ve got time, to help somebody tiative that I proposed to the Congress, this in need. As you said, the doctor from Wyo- company got a grant. And I think it’s a wise ming benefited just as much as the woman use of taxpayers’ money, to help the people in Guatemala did. And that’s the beauty of in this company develop this new technology. giving. This forklift right here is powered by a hydro- And so I thank you all for joining today. gen fuel cell. Doesn’t require any oil or prod- Our panelists did a magnificent job, like I ucts derived from oil, and the exhaust from knew they would. I thank you all very much this is water. for your interest in coming. To my fellow citi- And so we’re going to continue to promote zens, I appreciate you taking time. I appre- these kinds of technologies. And so I want ciate you being involved. Thank you for car- to thank you all for having me. I’m about ing about the plight of our fellow human to go to a—after lunch, go to a hospital to beings in the neighborhood in which we live. talk about the need for a health care system For those of you from other countries, wel- that is patient-driven. I will resist the idea come to America. You’ll find this to be a lov- of the Federal Government running the ing country, full of decent, caring, fine peo- health care system. And I’m going to spend ple. And it is an honor to be the President some time talking during a townhall meeting of such a country. about the kinds of reforms that we ought to Que Dios les bendiga. May God bless you. be promoting out of Washington that encour- Thank you. age there to be a consumer-driven health care system. I mean, we’ll take care of the NOTE: The President spoke at 10:30 a.m. at the poor, and we’ll help the elderly. But we be- Hyatt Regency Crystal City at Reagan National lieve health care is best run in the private Airport. In his remarks, he referred to Mariano Canu, cofounder, Labradores Mayas; and Presi- sector, not by the government. dent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil. The Of- And finally, I’m going to spend some time fice of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish talking about the war on terror and our need language transcript of these remarks. to succeed in Iraq. And I’m going to remind the people in the audience today that troop levels will be decided by our commanders Remarks Following a Tour of on the ground, not by political figures in GrafTech International Ltd. in Washington, DC, and that we’ve got a plan Parma, Ohio to lead to victory. And I fully understand that July 10, 2007 this is a difficult war, and it’s hard on the American people. But I will once again ex- Good, thanks. I’m proud to be with you plain the consequences of failure to the all. It’s great to be at GrafTech here in Cleve- American people, and I’ll explain the con- land. I’ve come to Cleveland to highlight a sequences of success as well. couple of important issues. First, energy And so I thank the people of Cleveland independence is an important part of our Na- for welcoming me here. I’m glad to be in tion’s future. And one way to achieve energy your city. Looking forward to a full day. independence is to promote technologies Thank you all. that will enable us to drive our economy without the use of Middle Eastern oil, for NOTE: The President spoke at 10:59 a.m. example. And one such technology is hydro- gen fuel cells. And GrafTech is on the lead- ing edge of developing a technology that will Remarks to the Greater Cleveland work, that will be competitive with other Partnership and a Question-and- forms of energy, and that will enable us, on Answer Session in Cleveland, Ohio the one hand, to be less dependent on oil July 10, 2007 and better stewards on—of the environment. And so I’m glad to be with these entre- The President. Thank you, sir. Thank you, preneurs, these scientists, these thinkers. Fred. Thanks for having me. Thank you,

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Fred. Thanks for coming. Thanks for having very difficult times. There was a recession; me. It’s a smart marketing tool, you know, the economy had gotten overheated, and it all the cameras. [Laughter] I thought for sure was correcting. And then we got hit by an the largest chamber of commerce was in enemy that killed nearly 3,000 of our citizens, Texas, but I guess not. [Laughter] which such an attack obviously would have I’m thrilled to be back in Cleveland. I’ve an effect on the economy. Then there were had a fascinating day. I went to a small busi- some corporate scandals that had a psycho- ness that is on the cutting edge of changing logical effect on our economy. I mean, peo- the way we’re going to consume energy. I ple were beginning to worry about the system just came from the Cleveland Clinic, which where people were not upholding the law, is one of the most fabulous hospitals in Amer- taking advantage of the situation, taking ad- ica. vantage of shareholders. I do want to spend a little time talking And yet we acted and cut taxes—and cut about our economy, talking about health care them hard because I believe—[applause]— and energy policy that will be an integral part because one of the philosophical drivers of of making sure the economy continues to this administration is, is that if you have more grow. I’d like to spend a little time talking money in your pocket to spend, save, or in- about the war against extremists and radicals. vest, the economy is more likely to grow. In And I’d like to answer some of your ques- other words, there’s always a conflict in tions, if you have any. Washington about how—what’s the proper Before I do, I want to tell you, Laura sends amount of money in Washington and what her best. She’s arguably the most patient is the proper amount of money in your pock- woman in America. [Laughter] She’s a fabu- et. I’m one of these fellows that err on the lous First Lady and a great mom. I love her side of trusting people to spend their money dearly, and she told me to say hi to you all, more than trusting government. And there- so, hi. [Laughter] fore, we cut—[applause]. I appreciate Joe Roman, who works with I’m not trying to elicit applause—thank Fred. Thanks for setting this deal up. Appre- you, but—[laughter]—and our plan has ciate the chance to come and visit with fellow worked. I don’t know if you noticed last citizens here in Cleveland. I’m the Com- month that we added another 132,000 new mander in Chief; I’m also the educator in jobs. We’ve added over 8 million new jobs chief. Part of my job is to explain the philos- since August of 2003. Entrepreneurship ophy behind the decisions that I have made. flourishes when people have got more capital I’m honored you’d give me a chance to do in their pocket. so. One of the interesting things about the tax I’m traveling with a good man, the Con- cuts that we proposed is that a lot of the gressman from this area—one of the Con- tax cuts were aimed at small businesses. One gressmen from this area, Steve LaTourette. of the statistics that makes our economy in- Proud to be with you, Congressman. Thank teresting and, I believe, robust is that 70 per- you for your time. State Auditor Mary Taylor cent of new jobs are created by small-busi- is here. Thanks for being here, Mary. I met ness owners. And that’s an important thing the mayor of Cleveland across the street at for our fellow citizens to remember, particu- the hospital. I was proud to be with him. larly those in Congress who are thinking I thank him for his time, for taking time out about something to do with the Tax Code. of his day. I thank Toby Cosgrove of—Doc, Most small businesses are subchapter S thank you for being here—from the hospital corporations or limited partnerships. In other there across the street. I thank the docs, by words, they pay tax at the individual income the way, for taking time to show me some tax rate. So therefore, when you cut income amazing technology. taxes on everybody who pays taxes—in other Let me first talk about our economy. It’s— words, when you lower the rates, it affects our economy is changing, and it’s strong. I the ability of small businesses to keep capital; remember back to—early on in my adminis- in other words, keep more of what they earn. tration when we were confronted with some And when a small business keeps more of

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what they earn, it is more likely that business policy is one that emphasizes private health. will expand. And therefore, when you hear In other words, the opposite of that would me say that 8 million new jobs have been be government control of health care. created since August of 2003, I might as well And there’s a debate in Washington, DC, have said, as well, the small-business sector over this. It’s going to be manifested here of America is strong. And the best way to shortly by whether or not we ought to expand keep it that way is to keep taxes low. what’s called SCHIP. SCHIP is a program And now we’re going to have a debate on designed to help poor children get insurance. that in Washington. And that’s going to be I’m for it. It came in when I was the Gov- the interesting philosophical argument. ernor of Texas. I supported that. But now You’ll hear people say in Washington, ‘‘Well, there are plans to expand SCHIP to include we need to raise taxes in order to either pay families—some proposals are families mak- for new programs or balance the budget.’’ ing up to $80,000 a year. In other words, I happen to believe we can balance the budg- the program is going beyond the initial intent et without raising taxes if we’re wise about of helping poor children. It’s now aiming at how we spend your money. And we’re prov- encouraging more people to get on govern- ing it possible. ment health care. That’s what that is. It’s a Tomorrow I’m going to talk about the size way to encourage people to transfer from the of the deficit. I’m not going to guess what private sector to government health care that will be, but I can predict it’s going to plans. be substantially lower than it was 3 years ago. My position is, we ought to help the poor, And we didn’t raise your taxes. We kept your and we do through Medicaid. My position taxes low, which caused the economy to is, we ought to have a modern medical sys- grow, which yielded more tax revenues. And tem for the seniors, and we do through Medi- because we set priorities, the deficit is shrink- care. But I strongly object to the government ing. providing incentives for people to leave pri- And the big fight in Washington is going vate medicine, private health care to the pub- to be whether or not the budgets that the lic sector. And I think it’s wrong, and I think Congress is trying to now pass is going to it’s a mistake. And therefore, I’ll resist go through. It’s not; I’ll veto them if they’re Congress’s attempt to federalize medicine. excessive in spending. I’m not going to let I mean, think of it this way: They’re going them raise your taxes. I think it would be to increase the number of folks eligible bad for the economy. I think it would be bad through SCHIP. Some want to lower the age for entrepreneurship. for Medicare. And then all of a sudden, you Let me talk about health care, since it’s begin to see a—I wouldn’t call it a plot, just fresh on my mind. [Laughter] The objective a strategy—[laughter]—to get more people has got to be to make sure America is the to be a part of a federalization of health care. best place in the world to get health care, In my judgment, that would be—it would that we’re the most innovative country, that lead to not better medicine but worse medi- we encourage doctors to stay in practice, that cine. It would lead to not more innovation we are robust in the funding of research, and but less innovation. that patients get good, quality care at a rea- And so—but you got to be for something sonable cost. in Washington. You can’t be against the fed- The immediate goal is to make sure there eralization; you’ve got to be for a plan that are more people on private insurance plans. enhances the relationship between doctor I mean, people have access to health care and patient, and that’s what I’m for. Here’s in America. After all, you just go to an emer- what I believe in: One, I believe in health gency room. The question is, will we be wise savings accounts as an alternative to the fed- about how we pay for health care? And I eralization of medicine. It gives people the believe the best way to do so is to enable opportunity to save, tax-free, for routine more people to have private insurance. And medical costs and, at the same time, have the reason I emphasize private insurance, the a catastrophic health care plan to back them best health care plans—the best health care up.

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I like the idea of people making decisions record that will be safe from snoopers. In that are—that will, one, enhance their health other words, it will be private but will make and, two, save money. The doc told me health care more efficient. that—we were looking at one of these bril- Cleveland Clinic did something inter- liant heart guys working for him. You’re not esting. I went to four different stations, and going to believe the technology in this hos- after every station, they gave me an outcomes pital, by the way. If you’re a Cleveland resi- book. In other words, ‘‘We’re willing to be dent, you ought to be proud of this hospital. measured,’’ says the good doc. There ought It’s unbelievable. to be transparency in medicine. How many He said something pretty wise, though. He of you have ever actually tried to price a med- said, ‘‘You can have all the technology that ical service? Probably not many. How many man can conceivably create, but if you con- of you have ever said, ‘‘Gosh, I wonder tinue to smoke, we’re going backwards. If whether this health care quality is better than you’re not exercising, if you’re not taking care the neighbors.’’ I doubt any of you have— of the body yourself, all the technology isn’t many of you have done that. Why? Because going to save your life.’’ In other words, there the system is not geared toward that. Some- is a certain responsibility that we have as citi- body else pays your bills. If you really think zens to take care of ourselves. And a health about it, and you’re working, say, for a com- savings account actually provides a financial pany in America, and they provide a health incentive for you to do that. care plan for you, there’s a third-party payer. I believe in plans that enable small busi- Well, if somebody else pays the bills, why nesses to congregate across jurisdictional do you care what the cost is at the time of lines so they can afford insurance, afford purchase? spreading risk just the way big corporations In other words, the whole plan has got to can do. In other words, one way to control be to bring more accountability into health costs is to enable small businesses, many of care, to make the consumer more responsible which are having trouble affording insurance, for making proper and rational decisions. to pool risk. That’s what accountability does. And I ap- I’m a strong believer in medical liability plaud you for that, Doc. That’s what trans- reform. We’ve got a legal system which is parency in pricing means. In other words, driving up the costs of medicine because docs you would be able to shop for price. are practicing defensive medicine, and driv- But the system, by the way, the tax system ing good doctors out of practice. And it does not enable the individual to be incented makes no sense to have a legal system that to buy insurance in the private sector. If you punishes good medicine. And therefore, I work for a company and you get insurance, strongly believe that the Congress ought to you get a good tax benefit. If you’re an indi- pass Federal medical liability insurance for vidual and buy insurance, you don’t get the our doctors and our providers. same tax benefit. That doesn’t make any I believe in information technology. The sense. The Tax Code needs to be reformed. first time I came to Cleveland Clinic, we The Tax Code ought to treat everybody were talking about how to modernize our equally when it comes to health care. And hospital systems and our doctors’ offices into therefore, one proposal, one way to deal with the 21st century. Perhaps the best way to that is something I talked to the Congress describe the problem is, we’ve got too many about, and said, if you’re a married person doctors still writing out prescriptions by and you’re working, you ought to get a hand. Most of them can’t write to begin with. $15,000 deduction, just like a mortgage de- [Laughter] And then they pass the file from duction, from your income whether you’re one person to the next. That’s inefficient in working for corporate America or you’re this new era. I mean, technology is changing working on your own, whether you’re work- the way we live; it ought to be changing the ing for a small-business owner or you’re look- way medicine operates. And it is at Cleveland ing for a job. Clinic. I envision the day, one day, when all And that way, you begin to make sure the of us will have our own medical electronic Tax Code is a level playing field. And that

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way, an individual market begins to grow be- And there’s an environmental cost for cause you have got an incentive at that point being dependent on oil. When we’re burning in time to go out and purchase health care. carbon, it creates greenhouse gases, which As a matter of fact, you won’t get your deduc- is an issue that we need to deal with. So we tion unless you purchase health care if you’re have a fantastic opportunity to do something in the individual market. different for the sake of our economy, for The whole point I’m trying to make is, the sake of our national security, and for the there’s an alternative to the federalization of sake of the environment. health care. It doesn’t make a nice, neat Today I went to a fascinating, little com- sound bite. It’s not something that’s easy to pany here that is building hydrogen fuel cells. sell—what do you care about making sure Hydrogen is the input; water is the output; you expand SCHIP, which sounds nice and and in the meantime, your car is going. Hy- cozy. But nevertheless, it is an alternative drogen fuel cells are coming. And there’s a that will work, and it is working right here role for the Federal Government to—spend- in America today. ing your money to promote new technologies The technological changes in the hospital to enable us to become less dependent on across the street have been amazing. The oil and better stewards of the environment. quality of care has been fantastic. There’s just Imagine one day being able to drive your more we can do to make sure we continue car with hydrogen as its power source and to be the leader, without wrecking the health water driblets as the output of your engine. care system. And that day is coming. Now, it’s down the Energy—in order to keep this economy road a little bit, but nevertheless, it is a part strong—and we do have a strong economy— of a comprehensive plan to make sure we not only have we added 8.2 million new jobs become less dependent on oil. In the mean- since August of 2003; interest is low; inflation time, when it comes to powering your cars, is down. I mean, this thing is buzzing. There are some parts of the country that are hurt- I want to tell you, I’m a big believer in having ing. The manufacturing sector up here isn’t our farmers grow a product that will enable doing as well as other parts of the country. us to drive our cars. I think it makes sense However, I would remind you that the unem- to spend your money to invest in new tech- ployment rate in Ohio is 5.8 percent. Is that nologies or to research new technologies, so perfect? No. Is it better than it has been? that when a fellow grows switch grass, for You bet it is. example, that grass can be processed into But the—one of the issues to make sure ethanol, which can power your automobile. that we continue to grow strong in the years Now, I don’t know if you know this or not; to come is energy. I mean, we’re just too we’re up to about 7 billion gallons of ethanol dependent on oil. I know that sounds hard being produced and used in America. That’s for a Texas guy to say. [Laughter] You’re up from 2 billion 3 or 4 years ago. That’s probably wondering whether I mean it. a good deal, if you’re interested about energy [Laughter] I do. It’s a national security issue, independence, because that energy is coming to be dependent on oil from parts of the from corn growers here in America. The world where some of the folks don’t like us. problem is, we’re growing a lot of corn for It’s an issue that’s got to be dealt with—now. ethanol, which means the price of corn is There’s an economic security issue when going up for the pig farmer. So we’ve got it comes to being dependent on oil. When to relieve the pressure on the pig farmer— the demand for crude oil goes up in a place [laughter]—well, not all—everybody—but like China because of economic growth, it pig farmer is paying—use a lot of corn. And causes the international price of oil to go up, therefore, we’re spending money on tech- which affects the gasoline price here in nologies. And I believe more and more peo- Cleveland, Ohio. That’s the way it works. ple are going to be using ethanol to power High crude oil prices yield to higher gasoline their automobiles. prices. And therefore, there’s an economic It’s happening in the Midwest a lot now. issue for being dependent on oil. Cellulosic ethanol breakthroughs will mean

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that we’re going to be having ethanol pro- I—now that I am one, I’m going to do the duced from wood chips or switch grasses, best I can to protect America. which means the market will spread across My mind changed on September the 11th, the United States, which will make us less 2001. It changed because I realized the big- dependent on oil. And by the way, the ex- gest responsibility government has is to pro- hausts from ethanol are a lot cleaner than tect the American people from further attack the exhaust from hydrocarbon-based fuels. and that we must confront dangers before We need to be promoting nuclear power. they come to hurt us again. That’s one of If you’re really interested in the environ- the really valuable lessons of September the ment, like a lot of people are, then we ought 11th, is to recognize that oceans can’t protect to be promoting a renewable source of en- us from an enemy that is ideologically driven ergy that emits no greenhouse gases. And and who will use murder as a tool to achieve one of the places where your government is their political objectives. spending money and is part of this com- Some in America don’t believe we’re at prehensive plan to change our energy mix war, and that’s their right. I know we are is to figure out a better way to deal with the and, therefore, will spend my time as the waste, nuclear waste. And I’m a big believer President doing the best I can to educate in reprocessing and fast-burner reactors, people about the perils of the world in which which is fancy words for, we can burn down we live and that we have an active strategy the fuel—reuse it, burn it down to less vol- in dealing with it. ume and less toxicity. First, the enemy—these folks aren’t iso- We’ve got 250 years of coal, at least, in lated folks, you know; they just kind of ran- America. If we’re interested in becoming less domly show up. They have an objective. They dependent on foreign sources of energy, we believe as strongly in their ideology as I be- ought to be using energy here at home in lieve in ours. They believe that they have a a wise way. But coal can be dirty, and there- obligation to spread a point of view that says, fore, we’re spending a lot of your money on for example, if you don’t worship the way developing clean coal technologies. we tell you to worship, there will be a con- And my only point to you is, is that one sequence; just like I believe we have an obli- of the reasons I’ve come to Cleveland is to gation to defend a point of view that says, herald some of the new technologies. As a what matters is the right for you to choose matter of fact, a fellow came up to me at your religion, and you’re free to do so in the this place, and he said, ‘‘Now, you’re a wind United States of America. person.’’ I said, ‘‘Well, yes, you know, I— They believe that they can use—they have a lot of hot air here.’’ [Laughter] And he said, no value for human life, see. That’s what dis- ‘‘We got a new industry evolving here: wind- tinguishes them from us in another way. mills.’’ That’s fine. I support that. I think it They will kill a Muslim, a child, or a woman makes a lot of sense. It makes us less depend- in a moment’s notice to achieve a political ent on foreign sources of oil. And that’s an— objective. They are dangerous people that important for making sure this economy con- need to be confronted. tinues to grow. And that’s why, since September the 11th, So my stop here has been really aimed at our policy has been to find them and defeat heralding technology. You got to be opti- them overseas so we don’t have to face them mistic about America’s future because of here at home again. Now, that is a strong— some of the great technologies that are taking a short-term strategy because the long-term place. And two of the areas where technology strategy has got to be one that marginalizes is really going to change America for a long these extremists and radicals by promoting time coming is in the energy field and in the an alternative ideology—I like to say, an ide- medical field. ology based on light, an ideology that pro- I want to talk about this war we’re in. First motes hope, an ideology when given a chance of all, I regret I have to tell you we’re in has worked every time to lift people’s spirits. war. I never wanted to be a war President. And that’s the ideology based upon liberty,

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the chance for people to live in a free and burn out in the capital of Iraq. I thought long open society. and hard about that. I was deeply concerned And it’s hard work. And this war is on a that violence in the capital would spill out multiple of fronts. One front is Afghanistan. into the countryside. I was deeply concerned And the front that is consuming the Amer- that one of the objectives of Al Qaida—and ican people right now is Iraq. And I fully by the way, Al Qaida is doing most of the understand how tough it is on our psyche. spectacular bombings, trying to incite sec- I fully understand that when you watch the tarian violence. The same people that at- violence on TV every night, people are say- tacked us on September the 11th is the ing, is it worth it? Can we accomplish an ob- crowd that is now bombing people, killing jective? Well, first, I want to tell you, yes, innocent men, women, and children, many we can accomplish and win this fight in Iraq. of whom are Muslims, trying to stop the ad- And secondly, I want to tell you, we must vance of a system based upon liberty. for the sake of our children and our grand- And I was concerned that the chaos would children. more enable them to—more likely enable You know, I was very optimistic at the end them to achieve their stated objective, which of ’05 when 12 million Iraqis went to the is to drive us out of Iraq so they could have polls. I know it seems like a decade ago. It a safe haven from which to launch their ideo- wasn’t all that long ago that, when given a logical campaign and launch attacks against chance, 12 million people voted. I wasn’t sur- America. That’s what they have said. The kill- prised, but I was pleased; let me put it to ers who came to America have said, with clar- you that way. I wasn’t surprised because one ity, ‘‘We want you out of Iraq so we can have of the principles on which I make decisions a safe haven from which to attack again.’’ is that I believe in the universality of free- I think it’s important for the Commander dom. I believe that freedom belongs to every in Chief to listen carefully to what the enemy man, woman, and child on the face of the says. They thrive on chaos. They like the tur- Earth. As a matter of fact, to take it a step moil. It enables them to more likely achieve further, I believe it is a gift from an Almighty their objectives. What they can’t stand is the to every man, woman, and child on the face advance of a alternative ideology that will end of the Earth. And therefore, I wasn’t sur- up marginalizing them. prised when people, when given the chance, So I looked at consequences of stepping said, I want to be free. I was pleased that back—the consequences not only for Iraq 12 million defied the car bombers and killers but the consequences for an important to vote. neighborhood, for the security of the United Our policy at that point in time was to get States of America. What would the Iranians our force posture in such a position—is that think about America if we stepped back in we would train the Iraqis so they would take the face of this extremist challenge? What the fight to those who would stop the ad- would other extremists think? What would vance of democracy, and that we’d be in a Al Qaida be able to do? They’d be able to position to keep the territorial integrity in recruit better and raise more money from place and chase down the extremists. That which to launch their objectives. Failure in was our policy. We didn’t get there in 2006 Iraq would have serious consequences for because a thinking enemy—in this case, we the security of your children and your grand- believe Al Qaida, the same people that at- children. tacked us in America—incited serious sec- And so I made the decision, rather than tarian violence by blowing up a holy religious pulling out of the capital, to send more troops site of the Shi’a. And then there was this in the capital, all aimed at providing security, wave of reprisal. so that a alternative system could grow. I lis- And I had a decision to make. Some of tened to the commanders that would be run- Steve’s colleagues—good, decent, patriotic ning the operation—in this case, the main people—believed the best thing for the man is a man named General David United States to do at that point in time was Petraeus, a smart, capable man who gives me to step back and to kind of let the violence his candid advice. His advice: ‘‘Mr. President,

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is—we must change the mission to provide falls of their political process. They’ve asked security for the people in the capital city of us to report on 18 different benchmarks. Iraq as well as in Anbar Province in order That’s what the Congress said in this last sup- for the progress that the 12 million people plemental spending bill. They said, come who voted can be made.’’ That’s why we’ve back here in mid-July and give us an interim done what we’ve done. report as to whether or not any progress is And we just started. He got all the troops being made in Iraq. And that’s what we’ll there a couple of weeks ago. He asked for be doing. So at the end of this week, you’ll 20-something thousand troops, and I said, if see a progress report on what’s been hap- that’s what you need, Commander, that’s pening in Iraq—and then in September, a what you got. And they just showed up. And final report on the benchmarks that I accept- they’re now beginning operations in full. ed and that Congress passed. And in Washington, you got people saying, And so that’s the challenge facing the stop. And here’s my attitude about this—and country. And it’s a necessary—in my judg- I understand there’s the debate, and there ment, it’s necessary work. I wouldn’t ask a ought to be a debate in our democracy, and mother or a dad—I wouldn’t put their son I welcome it. I welcome a good, honest de- in harm’s way if I didn’t believe this was nec- bate about the consequences of failure, the essary for the security of the United States consequences of success in this war. But I and peace of the world. And I strongly be- believe that it’s in this Nation’s interests to lieve it. And I strongly believe we will prevail. give the commander a chance to fully imple- And I strongly believe that democracy will ment his operations. And I believe Congress trump totalitarianism every time. That’s what ought to wait for General Petraeus to come I believe. And those are the belief systems back and give his assessment of the strategy on which I’m making decisions that I believe that he’s putting in place before they make will yield the peace. any decisions. That’s what the American peo- ple expect. They expect for military people You know, it’s really interesting; in my po- to come back and tell us how the military sition, I obviously have a unique view of operations are going. things at times. And one of the most inter- And that’s the way I’m going to play it as esting views that I’ve been able to—of history the Commander in Chief. I’ll be glad to dis- that I’ve been able to really focus on is our cuss different options. I mean, the truth of relationship with Japan. I’ve told this story the matter is, I felt like we could be in a a lot because I find it to be very ironic. different position at the end of 2005. I be- When my dad was a young guy, right out lieve we can be in a different position in of high school, he joined the United States awhile, and that would be to have enough Navy, became a Navy torpedo bomber pilot troops there to guard the territorial integrity and fought the Japanese. They were the of that country, enough troops there to make sworn enemy of the United States of Amer- sure that Al Qaida doesn’t gain safe haven ica. And he, like a lot of other young people, from which to be able to launch further at- gave it their all. And a lot of people died tacks against the United States of America, on both sides of the war. As a matter of fact, enough troops to be embedded and to help it was—the Japanese, as you rightly know, train the Iraqis to do their job. was the last major attack on the United States But we couldn’t get there without addi- prior to September the 11th, 2001. Some 60 tional troops. And now I call upon the United years later, I’m at the table talking about the States Congress to give General David peace with the Japanese Prime Minister, Petraeus a chance to come back and tell us Prime Minister Koizumi. whether his strategy is working. And then we I find that to be an inspiring story and a can work together on a way forward. hopeful story. It’s a story about the ability In the meantime, the Iraqis have got to of liberty to transform enemies into allies. do more work. This coming week, I’ll be pre- It’s a story about the ability for those who senting a—to the Congress a list of some of fought to become partners in peace. Prime the accomplishments and some of the short- Minister Koizumi and now Prime Minister

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Abe are close friends of mine in the inter- exploration of space through NASA. I can’t national arena. We talk about the spread of give you the exact level of funding. democracy in the troubled part of the world I would argue with you that we got a lot because we both have seen the effects of de- of money in Washington—not argue, I’ll just mocracy in our own relationship. tell you, we got a lot of money in Washington. I’ve got great faith in the power of liberty [Laughter] And we need to make sure we to transform the world for the sake of peace. set priorities with that money. One of the And the fundamental question facing our problems we have in Washington is that un- country is, will we keep that faith? like the books I saw at the hospital—of Thanks for letting me come and visit with which, you’re on the board—that said ‘‘re- you. And now I’ll be glad to answer some sults,’’ we’re not very good about measuring questions. results when we spend your money. A lot Main guy, first question. Sure, okay. of time, the program sound nice; a lot of [Laughter] time, the results don’t match the intentions. So one of the things I’ve tried to do National Aeronautics and Space through the OMB is to be results-oriented, Administration/Appropriations and when programs don’t meet results, we try to eliminate them. And that’s hard to do. Q. Well, this may seem like it was rigged, Isn’t it, Steven? Yes. But, no—I believe in Mr. President—— exploration, space exploration. And we’ve The President. Okay. changed the mission to make it relevant. Q. ——but there are people—— Thanks. The President. There have been a few Yes, sir. rigged questions in my day. [Laughter] I’m not telling you which way they were rigged Relations With the Muslim World/U.S. though. [Laughter] Foreign Policy and Diplomacy/War on Q. Mr. President, like this world-class Terror health care institution, NASA Glenn is one of the crown jewels, along with the talented Q. Mr. President, I’m originally from Paki- people there, in our new economy crown. stan. As you know, we recently won the crew ex- The President. Pakistan, good. ploration vehicle contract. We’re very happy Q. When I travel there, my friends over about that. Given all the competing demands here say that I’m crazy to go back—— for resources in Washington, what kind of The President. Yes. funding do you see for NASA and its mission Q. And when I’m there, the people over going forward? there say I’m crazy to go back. [Laughter] The President. Yes. That’s a awkward The President. You’re, like, in between question to ask a Texan. [Laughter] I think a rock and a hard place, brother. I mean—— that NASA needed to become relevant in Q. That’s right, that’s right. My question order to be—to justify the spending of your for you is, what are we doing with public money, and therefore, I helped changed the diplomacy to change the minds and the mission from one of orbiting in a space shut- hearts of a billion and a half Muslims around tle—in a space station to one of becoming the world? a different kind of group of explorers. And The President. Yes. I appreciate that; therefore, we set a new mission, which is to great question. First, let me say that I’m con- go to the Moon and set up a launching station fident your answer is, I love living in Amer- there from which to further explore space. ica, the land of the free and the home of And the reason I did that is, I do want the brave, the country where you can come to make sure the American people stay in- and ask the President a question and a coun- volved with—or understand the relevance of try where—are you Muslim? this exploration. I’m a big—I support explo- Q. Yes. ration, whether it be the exploration of new The President. ——where you can wor- medicine—through, like, NIH grants—the ship your religion freely. It’s a great country

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where you’re able to do that. Go ahead and that we’ve got now more students coming to sit down. Have you made a living? America from other countries, but through Q. Yes, I do—— a much better screening process. I can’t think The President. ——a country where can of a better way to help change people’s atti- come and make a living regardless of your tudes about America than having them come background. [Laughter] Seriously. It’s a great here and see for themselves. thing about America. If you dream and work, One of the big issues we have, of course, you can achieve. And we need to keep it that is the public airways. There’s a lot of tele- way. vision stations in the Middle East who spread His question is a good question. A lot of people in the Muslim world believe that the some of this propaganda. It’s easy to kick United States is at war with Islam, that the America around. And Karen Hughes is now response to the attack on our country was the head of public diplomacy in the State one where we attacked somebody based Department, and we spend a lot of time try- upon their religion. And I, for one, obviously ing to figure out how to counter the false need to battle that image because we’re not and negative message about America with facing religious people; we’re facing people the true story of our country. whose hearts are filled with hate, who have And so we’re on a multiple of fronts—vis- subverted a great religion. its, exchanges, better messaging. We’ve got Most Muslims reject the kind of violence to be careful about our language here, and perpetuated on innocent people by Al Qaida. I am. As a matter of fact, interestingly I happen to believe—I just don’t—believe enough, right after September the 11th, one they’re religious people who murder the in- of the first places I went was to a mosque— nocent to achieve political objectives. or, actually, an Islamic center there in Wash- And so step one is to make it clear that ington, DC. I went back to the same center we reject radical and extremism and mur- 50 years later—50 years after Eisenhower, derers, not reject a great religion. Step two Ike, dedicated it, to send a message about is to encourage people like you to go to Paki- America. stan. You’re more credible than I am amongst your pals there. You can say, ‘‘You’re But we’ve got a lot of work to do on that not going to believe America. You’re not front. It’s a great question. Pakistan, by the going to believe the country where people way, is a—Musharraf is a strong ally in the from all different backgrounds, all walks of war against these extremists. I like him, and life, can live in freedom.’’ I appreciate him. I’m, of course, constantly And I don’t exaggerate to you because the working with him to make sure that democ- best diplomacy we have is when citizens trav- racy continues to advance in Pakistan. But el overseas and/or people come here to he’s been a valuable ally in rejecting extrem- America. One of the problems we faced ists. And that’s important, to cultivate those when it came to diplomacy, public diplo- allies. macy, right after 9/11 is, we shut her down. See, again I repeat to you—and this is hard You couldn’t get in this country, particularly, for some Americans to understand—we are perhaps if you were from Pakistan. I mean, at the beginning stages of a major ideological this country said, ‘‘Whoa, we got a new struggle that will affect the security of the world,’’ and therefore, it was, stop a lot of United States. And it’s a struggle between student visas. You might remember, some of moderation and extremists. It’s a struggle be- the kids that flew those airplanes were on— tween radicals who kill and rational people here as students. And we did what most who want to live in peace. Americans expected us to do—made sure we inventoried where we were so we could best Most Muslim mothers want their children protect the American people. to grow up in peace; they’re just like mothers And we’ve learned a lot since then. So I’m in the United States. There’s some universal pleased to report to you that, working with characteristics of people. And the funda- Condi—and it’s her main responsibility—is mental question facing us as a country is, will

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we have wise policies that confront these ex- between Arizona and Mexico, you don’t know tremists? And the first step toward wise pol- where the border is. There’s no—it’s like icy is recognizing they exist and we’re at war desert. with them. Secondly, there is a powerful force in the And it’s—look, I spend a lot of time think- world, and it’s called parenthood. And when ing about this issue. That’s what you pay me you’re poor and you got mouths to feed and to do. And I’m briefed every day about you got an opportunity to put some money threats on the homeland. And you should be on the table—food on the table, you’re going grateful to—the fact that there are a lot of to come if you can see that opportunity. And good, good, honorable people, either at home you’ll do everything you can to get here to or overseas, doing everything in their power put food on the table. I used to say, family to protect you. values don’t stop at the Rio Grande River. I wish I could report that this thing, this And so you shouldn’t be surprised that a threat, this struggle, is going to end shortly; whole industry has sprung up where people it’s not. That doesn’t mean we have to have get stuck in the back of an 18-wheeler or— kinetic action all the time. But it does mean and come to work. That troubles a lot of America must not lose faith in our values and Americans; I understand. What I’m telling lose sight of our purpose. And that’s going you is, it’s hard to enforce this border, but to be the challenge facing this country. we’re doing a better job of doing it. I’m worried about isolationism. I’m wor- I happen to believe the best way to really ried about people saying, it’s not worth it any- enforce the border, however, is to recognize more; it’s too hard; let it happen over there; that people are coming to do work Americans it’s not going to affect us. It will affect us. aren’t doing, and therefore, there ought to And frankly, I’m worried about protec- be a way for people to do so in a rational tionism, where people say, it’s too hard to way. That’s why I supported what’s called a trade; let’s just wall ourselves off from the temporary-worker plan that said, you can rest of the world. come and do a job an American is not doing, Anyway, it’s a long answer to a good ques- on a temporary basis, so you don’t have to tion. sneak across the border. In other words, one Yes, ma’am. way to take pressure off the border is to have a way for people to come here on a tem- Immigration Reform porary basis legally. Q. Mr. President, I know immigration has Now, Steve was telling me—I was telling been a big problem in the U.S. And what Steve—we’re doing a good job, by the way. is your next step with the immigration bill? If you notice in the papers today, the arrests The President. Yes, thanks. [Laughter] I are down. In other words, fewer people are view it as—no, it’s a great question. No, I coming. Last year, by the way, we arrested appreciate that. Actually, I view it as a great and sent back across over a million people. opportunity. And thank you very much for In other words, there’s a lot of action down that question. As you know, I’ve had a dif- there. It may not look like it or sound like ference of opinion with people in both polit- it on your radios or TVs, but there’s a lot ical parties on this issue. I felt like now is of work going on. the time to address the immigration issue and There’s a lot of nursery people up here not just pass it on and hope it gets better. in this part of the world, I understand. But I believe in rule of law, and therefore, I one of these days, these nursery people are know that the Federal Government needs to going to say, ‘‘We can’t continue to grow our enforce law. One law is—one part of the law business because we can’t find the workers.’’ is, don’t sneak into our country. And there- Americans are—I don’t know what the prop- fore, we have been aggressive at border secu- er terminology is for nursery worker—prun- rity, which is making sure we modernize our ing, that’s a—we’ll try pruning—[laughter]— border. You’ve probably never been down planting, planting—starts with a ‘‘P.’’ [Laugh- there; I grew up down there. It’s a big bor- ter] The question is, can they find enough der. And it’s really long, and in parts of it, workers? I was talking to a fellow today at

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lunch. He said, ‘‘We need more high-skilled We should never lose confidence in the workers here in Cleveland, H–1B visas.’’ ability for this great country to assimilate The system isn’t working, is what I’m tell- people into our culture. I think it’s healthy ing you. It’s a great question, by the way. that people come to America with a dream. The system—and I’m glad you asked it—the I think it’s healthy that people say, ‘‘Just give system isn’t working. And I felt it needed me a chance, and I’ll work my heart out so to be fixed and went to Congress—and, by a next generation can succeed.’’ the way, the other question is, what do you And so in my line of work, ma’am, you do with the 12 million people already here? just lay out what you think is right. I’m not There’s 12 million people, they estimate, the kind of fellow to tell you—I don’t run here illegally. Some of them have been here focus groups and polls to tell me what I think a long time. Some of them been good citi- is right. I try to lead—[applause]—I felt it zens. You may even know some of them. was the right thing to do. It didn’t work, but They’ve raised kids. Some of the kids were I’m glad I tried because when it’s all said born here, went to college—good, productive and done, I’ll be able to look in the mirror citizens in America. What do you do with and say, you came, and you did what you them? You kick them out? I mean, I didn’t thought was the right thing for the country. think that was practical. As a matter of fact, Yes. I know it’s not practical. Or you make them Visa Wavier Program a citizen off the bat? No, you don’t do that. That’s called amnesty. That says, okay, fine, Q. Mr. President, I have an organization you broke the law; there’s—you get re- that has supported the captive nations of the world for 48 years. And our members are warded. You can’t have that kind of system. sincerely interested in this Visa Waiver Pro- And so I supported a system that said, you gram—— pay a fine if you’ve been here that long; you The President. Yes. show you’re not a criminal; you show you Q. ——for friendly countries so people paid your taxes; you go back home to touch could visit their relatives and friends on a base, to apply for the right to get in line— shorter basis, like 30 days, 60 days. Are you not ahead of somebody who has been trying in favor of this? to get here legally, but in line. The President. Great question. Are you Anyway, it didn’t work. And we’ll have to from the Baltics? You are? see whether or not the forces that recognize Q. Sort of. I’m of Polish decent. we’ve got to do something for the sake of The President. Polish decent. Well, that’s the economy and sake of the border continue right. Here’s the thing she’s talking about: to mount because there wasn’t the political In the Soviet era, we had a different visa pol- will in Washington to get anything done on icy with Soviet countries than we did with, a comprehensive basis. And that’s what hap- say, Western European countries. And the pens sometimes in politics. danger—not the danger—the issue was—I One of the things I try to remind people take it back, not danger—issue—[laugh- in Congress is this—I’ve told this story a lot ter]—was that people would come and over- as well. You get stuck on a story when you’re stay their visas. In other words, people would President; you generally stay on it. [Laugh- say, I’m coming to travel and visit, but, in ter] Anyway, I was at the Coast Guard Acad- fact, they were coming to stay. And therefore, emy, giving a graduation speech there. And there was an accountability system in place the number-one guy in the class, his grand- that’s been around for a long time. father was a migrant worker from Mexico. Fast-forward to today. Polish troops And he talked with such unbelievable pride helped us liberate Iraq, and yet the citizens about a country where a fellow can come to that supported a Government that helped us do jobs Americans weren’t doing, to work, liberate Iraq aren’t treated the same as citi- and here his grandson is, speaking in front zens from other allies. of the President, talking about a bright fu- And so to answer your question, yes, I am ture. for changing the visa waiver policy for Poland

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and countries like Poland. And every time that after years and years of bloodshed in the I go—as you know, I was in Poland—you Far East, our relations in the Far East are may not know—I was in Poland the last trip strong, not only with Japan, the former and the Czech Republic and Bulgaria and enemy, South Korea, ally, but an ally, by the Albania. And they wanted to know, question way, that went through a troublesome march one is, when are you going to treat us like to democracy. They’re now a democracy, but everybody else in the European Union? And you might remember that during the period my answer was, we’re working on a com- of that change, they went through a pretty prehensive immigration bill—[laughter]—to strong-handed military government. address a lot of issues. And that was one of We got good relations with China. I don’t the issues we were trying to address. think in the early fifties anybody would have In the name of fairness, Condi and I are predicted that the Chinese marketplace working on—with Congress on a new Visa would more likely look like what Adam Smith Waiver Program. Great question. envisioned rather than Karl Marx, although Yes, sir. Go ahead and yell it out. the political system lags, admittedly. But nev- ertheless, there’s a lot of—my only point to War on Terror/Spread of Democracy you is, I don’t think people could have seen Q. Mr. President, first of all, as a fairly what life was like. conservative talk show host, I’d like you to And so, yes, it’s going to be a struggle— please tell Congress to leave the fairness doc- you’re right—for a lot of reasons. But is it trine in the ground where it is. impossible to—achieve the marginalization The President. Thank you—yes. [Laugh- of those who are able to radicalize people, ter] and I think it is. I think it is. And not only Q. Second of all, going back to Iraq, sir, I think it is; I think it’s necessary. you mentioned Muslim mothers want their I believe that forms of government matter. children to grow up in peace. I believe that frustration and hopelessness, The President. Right. because people don’t have a sense of future, Q. The children of extremists, however, makes it easier for radical movements and are being trained right now. radicals to be able to recruit. That’s what I The President. Correct. believe. And therefore, that’s why I’m such Q. We’ve seen the videos. We have seen a strong believer in advocating the march of the indoctrination—schoolchildren being in- democracy in the Middle East. doctrinated to hate Americans and to hate And look, I fully understand that, and this Jews. is a very interesting ideological debate—peo- The President. Correct. ple call me—he’s a hopeless idealist, they say. Q. The next generations of terrorists are But I also think it’s realistic to understand, already being bred. Isn’t is true that regard- unless we change the conditions of how peo- less of how long it takes to win in Iraq or ple live, that it’s going to be hard to Afghanistan, the war on terror will never, marginalize those who would prey upon the ever truly be ended? young. You notice, none of these guys that The President. I think the strategy—first have given the orders are actually the suicide of all, I’ve read a lot of history, and I’m cer- bombers. That’s why they’re still giving the tainly no history expert, but I wonder what orders. [Laughter] But they’re able to prey the rhetoric would have been like at the be- upon young people. And I think a lot of it ginning of the cold war. Is it possible people has to do with education. And no question, might have speculated—and again, I can’t we’re working with governments such as tell you if this is—I’m just kind of speculating Musharraf’s Government to address the now—is it possible people speculated that, madrassas. Education matters a lot, whether after the indoctrination of so many children it be in helping to eradicate poverty or help- about the wisdom of Marx, that this cold war ing to deal with radicalism. would ever end? But if you living in a society where you After Korea, I suspect no one would have have no hope, then you’re going to look for predicted what I’m going to tell you now, another form of false hope. So I happen to

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think the idea of encouraging people to adopt Native American Rights forms of government that give people hope Q. Mr. President—— is in our national interest. The President. Yes, sir. Now, this is a different foreign policy than Q. ——Republican Presidents, going back what we used to espouse here. It used to to the Nixon administration, have strongly fa- be, in many ways, what mattered was calm, vored Indian self-determination. apparent calm. What mattered most was sta- The President. India? bility. Let’s have a foreign policy that pro- Q. American Indian self-determination motes stability to make sure we get plenty and first-nations communities. And it seems of cheap energy as well. like the conservative Court, however, has After September the 11th, I came to the been consistently eroding that self-deter- conclusion that such a foreign policy pro- mination. What has your administration— moted instability because while things might what position does your administration take look calm on the surface, beneath the surface with respect to sovereignty and Native Amer- broiled frustration and doubt and hopeless- ican rights? ness. And so the policy that I advocate is one The President. Very interesting question. that promotes democracy as an alternative in I believe in the sovereignty of the Indian na- this ideological struggle, all aiming to tions. And far be it for me to second-guess marginalize the recruiters and give hope to Court decisions. On the other hand, I will the recruitees. And do I believe it can work? continue to put judges who strictly interpret I do. That’s why I told you the Japanese story. the Constitution and not legislate from the History has been—history—liberty pre- bench. But I do support the notion of sov- vails every time if we stay with it, if you think ereignty. It’s really interesting. about history. Think about Europe. There Yes, sir. You’re next, after him. were two major wars on the continent of Eu- Disaster Preparedness and Response/ rope, and today, Europe is whole, free, and Pandemic Flu at peace. Why? Because forms of govern- Q. Sorry about that. Mr. President—— ment matter. And it’s in our interest—and The President. Doc. I’ve said this once, and I’ll say it again: It’s Q. ——I’m a pediatrician at Rainbow Ba- in our interest not to lose faith in certain fun- bies & Children’s Hospital across the damental values. street—[inaudible]—Cleveland. And it’s hard work, particularly hard work The President. Thank you, sir. Nutri- given the fact that we live in this world in tionist? which news and imagery travels instantly. Q. Pediatrician, yes, sir. The enemy knows that. The interesting thing, The President. Pediatricianist. they know a lot about us in America. They Q. Yes, sir. Returning to a domestic item know we’re kind-hearted, decent people who very quickly—— value human life. And they understand that The President. Must feel good to be a Americans will recoil from the violence on healer. our TV screens. That’s what they know. And Q. It is, sir. Thank you. Good to serve. I know—or I strongly believe that if we recoil One of the things that we’re passionate about and leave the region with precipitous with- in pediatrics now, both at Rainbow and drawals or withdrawals not based upon con- across the Nation, is disaster preparedness ditions on the ground, it’s going to get worse, and disaster response, specifically the needs not better. And my attitude is, now is the of children. Could you comment, Mr. Presi- time to do the hard work so your children dent, on how well-prepared we are as a na- can more likely grow up in peace. tion for, God forbid, the next Katrina or pan- That’s what I believe, sir. And that’s why demic flu or some such calamity? I’m making my decisions. The President. We learned a lot of lessons Yes. A couple of more, then you’re paying from Katrina. Lesson one is, is that we’ve me a lot of money, and I’ve got to go back got to make sure local governments are bet- to work. [Laughter] ter prepared to respond. Lesson two is that

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there’s seamless decisionmaking between the Thirdly, just in case it were to hit here State and local government. And lesson three in the United States, we have stockpiled a is, is that if need be, the Federal Government lot of the spray. What’s it called—anyway— needs to move troops in there, regardless of Tamiflu. It may work, may not work. But just what the local people want. in case it does work, we got a lot of stockpile We are better prepared and drill it a lot. for you—[laughter]—we do, as a way to try Great question. The more difficult question to, at least, arrest somewhat the spread of is his question on pandemic flu. I asked Mike the disease. Leavitt, who is the head of HHS, and But the ultimate effect—and this is what Chertoff to—he’s the Homeland guy—to the dangerous thing about this is—is the ulti- chair—Department of Homeland Security— mate public policy decisions are going to be, [laughter]—Secretary of Homeland Security. do we shut down America? Do you say that [Laughter] In Crawford, we kind of shortcut nobody can come in and out of your city? it. [Laughter] Anyway, look, nobody has ac- Or do you shut down all air travel? And so cused me of being Shakespeare, you know? we’ve war-gamed a lot of options. And Mike [Laughter] Anyway—I just hope you can fig- has traveled the country—Mike Leavitt—to ure out what I’m saying—[laughter]—is we State and local government to help them spend a lot of time on pandemic flu. One think through different procedures that way you anticipate a crisis is, you kind of war- would be necessary to try to halt the spread game it. of this virus if it were to mutate. For example, how would a local commu- The first—I’m going to try to see if I can nity deal with schools? We happen to believe remember as much to make it sound like I’m that the local response would be a better re- smart on the subject. But I actually spend sponse than the Federal Government trying a lot of time on it because I am concerned to one-size-fits-all each community’s re- that if the pandemic flu, the H5N1 virus sponse. And that, as you know—I mean, were to mutate to the point where it becomes there’s different responses to different hurri- transmittable from bird to human to human, canes that have hit, and so it would be a little we’ll have a significant international problem uneven. And so we’re trying to train as best on our hands. So step one is to work with as we can and war-game it out. It’s a very countries where the virus is more likely to interesting question you got. show up and mutate on transparent informa- I would give us a ‘‘A’’ for recognizing that tion systems. we need to think about it. And until we get When I went to Vietnam, one of the things this vaccine—and by the way, we do have we looked at was the Vietnamese reporting it teed up pretty well, where the vaccine process of the detection of chicken viruses makers will be willing to go full production and whether or not that virus was mutating if we can find the proper vaccine to manufac- to the point where it could become infec- ture. We’re spending a lot of money on it tious. And we’ve done a good job of that. at NIH—through NIH. And I’d give us good As a matter of fact, at the APEC—which is marks for recognizing the issue, good marks the countries around the Pacific Rim—meet- for doing something about it, and the only— ing, the last two meetings and this next one I can’t tell you what marks we’ll get in re- I’m going to in Australia, I always make it sponse because, thankfully, we haven’t had a point for—to talk about the need for all to respond, but we’re watching carefully. of us to be in a position where we can share Yes, sir. Good question. information and track the mutation of the virus. Education/President’s Domestic Agenda The issue, as you know, is that there is Q. Thank you, Mr. President. If you talk no, like, inoculation that will stop the spread. to a lot of neighborhood folks here in Cleve- Yet we’re spending a lot of money on trying land, they say that there’s a war on terror to develop new vaccines based not upon eggs brewing in our neighborhoods with an in- but on genetics. And Leavitt says we’re mak- crease in crime over the past few months. ing some pretty good progress. The President. Yes.

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Q. What are your thoughts on how we can selves. There is a mindset at times that cer- improve opportunity and decrease crime in tain kids are too hard to educate. Maybe the urban areas to make Cleveland an inter- mother or daddy doesn’t speak English as the national metropolis? first language or inner-city kids, as if there’s The President. No, thanks. Yes, great no inherent God-given talent that, if properly question. First of all, there is—crime is rising motivated, can enable that kid to excel. in some communities—under some crime, And so I strongly believe it’s in the national like, I think it was 1 percent last year. In interests to say, we expect you to read—un- other words, no question that—look, I’m an less, of course, you happen to believe they education guy; let me just put it bluntly. I can’t. I’m a high expectations person. I be- don’t see how you can provide a hopeful fu- lieve if you set low expectations, you know ture for a child if the child can’t read, write, what you’re going to get? You’re going to get or add and subtract. Now, that’s pretty ele- low results. I believe every child can learn. mentary. But it doesn’t happen enough. And That’s what I believe. And I believe that gov- therefore, I strongly support accountability ernments ought to expect to have good re- in public schools. I happen to believe that sults. it is a huge advance in kind of providing— And so inherent in this education proposal, promoting opportunity. which is now the law—which, frankly, has See, when I was the Governor of Texas, irritated a lot of people; it just has. That’s I was appalled at the number of schools that what happens when you hold people to ac- just shuffled kids through and hoped that count—that, I think, it makes sense to say, they learned something. And then you know no excuses; we want you to read. And we what happened? We get about the 9th or want you to read not only at the third grade 10th grade, and lo and behold, they can’t but at the fourth grade and at the fifth grade read. And oops, it’s a little late. Too bad, just and at the sixth grade and at the seventh go on through. It’s much easier, by the way, to give up on a kid early and just kind of grade. And we’re going to test to make sure socially promote. And so I insisted, as Gov- you do. ernor of Texas and then working with people You design the test. If you believe in local like Steve LaTourette, to change the way the control of schools, the test ought to be de- Federal Government deals with education. signed, and they ought to be rigorous. And Now, I believe strongly in local control of by the way, if you’re a poor inner-city stu- schools, okay. I believe you ought to chart dent, and you can’t read at grade level, we the paths to excellence here. I believe that will use that diagnostic tool to provide you the government closest to the people governs additional money to make sure that you get best because you’re most responsive to the the help that you need in order to make sure needs of your particular community. That’s you’re not left behind. what I believe. However, I also believe that And frankly, I don’t care if that parent if the Federal Government spends money, spends that money at the public school or we have the right to ask whether or not cer- a church or a private tutor. All I want is to tain objectives are being met. make sure that that child gets the extra help And so inherent in No Child Left Behind he or she needs to make sure that the next is a solid demand by results-oriented people time they test on reading or math, they’re who want to know whether or not an inner- at grade level. And if a school—no, wait, let city kid can read at grade level by the third me finish. I’m not through yet because you grade. I don’t think that’s too much to ask, got me started on something I strongly be- to set a standard and have expectations that lieve in. [Laughter] must be met in return for Federal money. And if the school won’t change nor teach, A matter of fact, I think that is the way to I believe parents ought to be given different make sure that—I used to call it this way: options. We shouldn’t have a school system challenge the soft bigotry of low expectations. that locks people into persistent failure, if Let’s just face it—let me finish here—let’s you’re interested in changing the dynamics just face it; let’s be honest about our our- of an inner-city, for example.

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You know, we did something in Wash- est, just like money that we put in our own ington very interesting—that I found inter- savings account. I want people to own assets. esting, at least. We have now got a scholar- One of the big reasons I’ve pushed home- ship program, opportunity scholarships. See, ownership is, I like the idea of encouraging the Federal Government funds the DC city and fostering independence by ownership. and—a lot of the DC city and the schools, And so—and finally, one way to help and so we can do this in Washington. So we inner-city youth—this is a subject I’ve have opportunity scholarships that go to thought a lot about—is to encourage the in- poorer parents, where the parent can take volvement of faith-based and community- that money and send their child to a paro- based programs in the compassionate deliv- chial school or a private school. The line is ery of love and help. And that’s a different out the door. It’s amazing what happens idea for a welfare system, see. I am a big when you give parents options. believer in the ability of faith-based programs Part of the accountability system, by the to help change people’s lives. I, for one, be- way, enables parents to understand reality as lieve that a faith-based program can help well. When I was Governor, I talked to a people quit drinking—me, for starters. I be- lot of parents, and they say, ‘‘Man, my child’s lieve that there is nothing more powerful school is great. I’m real happy with the than a mentor putting an arm around a child school, Governor; we’re doing great.’’ And who needs love and says, I love you. Many then all of a sudden, the test scores get post- of the faith-based programs are full of people ed, and if the school isn’t meeting expecta- who are in the program in the first place be- tions compared to the other schools, the par- cause they believe in the universal admoni- ent might say, well, maybe the school is not tion to love a neighbor like you’d like to be doing so good, and they start getting in- loved yourself. volved. And therefore, one of the initiatives that I—and so step one of your question is, let’s I have put forth in Washington, that is quite get it right early. I believe strongly in after- controversial, is that we ought to open up school programs. I believe that we’ve got to programs—Federal money to faith-based change the aspirational notions of some of programs, so long as, one, they don’t pros- our children that college is a good thing to elytize, and two, so long as they help meet do and that success is available for people a social objective. Why shouldn’t we say that who go to college. I mean that—and commu- we ought to be spending your taxpayers’ nity colleges—I’m a big believer in commu- money on programs to help inner-city kids nity colleges. I think that’s part of having a regardless of what the delivery system is? hopeful tomorrow for inner-city—or not Why shouldn’t we say, faith-based programs inner-city—to know that college is available. that many times are able to go into neighbor- That’s why I’m a big, strong supporter of Pell hoods that other programs aren’t able to go grants as a way to encourage kids to go to into—why shouldn’t we empower them to college. help people realize in life that there may be I am concerned about a society that has a better path than the path one may be not—a part of our society that hasn’t accu- tempted to go down? mulated assets. It’s interesting; a lot of us So there’s a comprehensive agenda. My have grown up in a world in which asset accu- dream is for all of us to feel that the promise mulation, savings, has been an integral part of America belongs to them. And it’s a great of our societies. In parts of Cleveland, I sus- country. It is; it’s a fabulous country. I know pect, people don’t have assets. They haven’t people are frustrated, and people get con- had the capacity or the willing—or the ability cerned. But I would hope we would all keep to save money. That’s why I believe that things in perspective and realize what a fan- when we reform Social Security, that we tastic nation we have. ought to give people the option of setting I mean, when you really compare our life aside some of their own money they’ve here compared to the lives of others around earned in the Social Security system as a sav- the world, we’re blessed. To that end, to ings account that can earn compound inter- whom much is given, much is required. And

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that’s why we’re in the lead when it comes Proclamation 8160—Captive Nations to solving the pandemic of HIV/AIDS on the Week, 2007 continent of Africa and working to end ma- July 10, 2007 laria. These are two achievable objectives. One is to get antiretrovirals into the hands By the President of the United States of people who suffer. And American tax- of America payers have been incredibly generous. And it ought to make you feel good about a coun- A Proclamation try that is willing to say, I see suffering, and I want to help. In other words, we’re working Liberty is the path to lasting peace and on suffering at home, and we ought to work the unalienable right of every man, woman, on suffering abroad as well. and child. During Captive Nations Week, we underscore our commitment to protecting I’m asking Congress for $30 billion. It’s human rights, advancing democracy and double the HIV/AIDS initiative that we’ve freedom, and ending tyranny across the got in place. But let me tell you an interesting globe. statistic. When we first got going on the ini- Expanding freedom is a moral imperative, tiative in 2003, I think it was, 50,000 people and today more people are free than ever were getting antiretrovirals in the countries before. Freedom is reaching around the that we were working in. Today, over 1.2 mil- world, and America is working side-by-side lion people’s lives have been saved because with new democracies in Liberia, Mauritania, of the generosity of the American taxpayer. Ukraine, Georgia, and Kyrgyzstan. The peo- And now we’re on an initiative to end ma- ple of Kuwait held elections in which women laria, or cut it at least in half, in affected were able to vote and run for office for the countries around the world. Should we be first time, and the elected parliament is exer- doing that as a country? The answer is, abso- cising real influence with the government. lutely, we should be. And the reason why is, We continue to stand firmly behind the citi- is that we’re a blessed nation. And we’ve be- zens of Lebanon, Afghanistan, and Iraq as come even doubly blessed by helping others they defend their democratic gains against be able to deal with disease and realize the extremist enemies. Many are making great blessings of an Almighty. That’s what I be- sacrifices for liberty, and they deserve our lieve. steadfast support. Listen, I got to hop. [Laughter] Thanks While there is progress in freedom’s ad- for your time. God bless. vance, nations such as Belarus, Burma, Cuba, North Korea, Syria, Iran, Sudan, and Zimbabwe still oppress their citizens. My Ad- NOTE: The President spoke at 1:42 p.m. at the ministration recently created the Human InterContinental Hotel Cleveland. In his remarks, Rights Defenders Fund to provide grants for he referred to Frederick R. Nance, chairman of the legal defense and medical expenses of the board of directors, and Joseph D. Roman, democratic dissidents arrested or beaten by president and chief executive officer, Greater Cleveland Partnership; Mayor Frank G. Jackson repressive governments. In addition, we have of Cleveland, OH; Delos M. ‘‘Toby’’ Cosgrove, nearly doubled funding for democracy chief executive officer and chairman of the board projects throughout the world. The American of governors, the Cleveland Clinic; Gen. David people believe that the flame for freedom H. Petraeus, USA, commanding general, Multi- burns in every human heart, and that light National Force—Iraq; and President Pervez cannot be extinguished by governments, ter- Musharraf of Pakistan. rorists, or tyrants. During Captive Nations Week, we remember that human freedom is the key to achieving respect for all human rights. The Congress, by Joint Resolution ap- proved July 17, 1959 (73 Stat. 212), has au- thorized and requested the President to issue

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a proclamation designating the third week in You are authorized and directed to publish July of each year as ‘‘Captive Nations Week.’’ this determination in the Federal Register. Now, Therefore, I, George W. Bush, President of the United States of America, George W. Bush by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United NOTE: This memorandum was released by the Of- States, do hereby proclaim July 15 through fice of the Press Secretary on July 11. 21, 2007, as Captive Nations Week. I call upon the people of the United States to reaf- firm our commitment to all those seeking lib- Remarks at a Ribbon-Cutting erty, justice, and self-determination. Ceremony for the Renovated James In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set S. Brady Press Briefing Room and an my hand this tenth day of July, in the year Exchange With Reporters of our Lord two thousand seven, and of the July 11, 2007 Independence of the United States of Amer- ica the two hundred and thirty-second. The President. Thank you very much. Yes, thanks. I like a good, short introduction. George W. Bush [Laughter] Q. [Inaudible] [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, The President. 10:26 a.m., July 11, 2007] Yes. [Laughter] After all, it is your room. Yes. [Laughter] Welcome NOTE: This proclamation was published in the back to the West Wing. We missed you— Federal Register on July 12. sort of. [Laughter] I can already tell this place has improved. The last time I was in here to hold a press conference, I broke out Presidential Determination on into a sweat—not because of your questions Transfer of Economic Support Funds but because of the climate. The air-condi- to the Overseas Private Investment tioner seems to work well. I hope the facility Corporation To Establish a Loan is—suits your needs. I really do. Guarantee Program The relationship between the President July 10, 2007 and the press is a unique relationship, and it’s a necessary relationship. I enjoy it. I hope Presidential Determination No. 2007–26 you do. As I say, sometimes you don’t like the decisions I make, and sometimes I don’t Memorandum for the Secretary of State like the way you write about the decisions. But nevertheless, it’s a really important part Subject: Presidential Determination on of our process. And the fact that you were Transfer of Economic Support Funds to the working in substandard conditions just wasn’t Overseas Private Investment Corporation to right. It really wasn’t. Establish a Loan Guarantee Program And so my White House worked with Pursuant to section 579 of the Foreign Op- Steve and Ann, worked with Mark Smith to erations, Export Financing, and Related Pro- get it right. And I think it’s going to benefit grams Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law future Presidents and future White House 109–102)(the ‘‘Act’’), I hereby determine that press corps, to be working in modern condi- it is in furtherance of the purposes of the tions, conditions where a fellow like me will Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, that $5 mil- feel comfortable coming in here answering lion in Economic Support Funds appro- a few questions without losing 20 pounds. priated under title II of the Act may be trans- [Laughter] ferred to and merged with the funds appro- It was really hot in here. As a matter of priated by the Act for the Overseas Private fact, I can’t imagine how Snow could handle Investment Corporation Program Account, it on a regular basis. But now it’s modern, to be subject to the terms and conditions of and it’s going to enable you to do a better that account. job. And I’m glad that’s the case.

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I want to thank Peter Doherty. Where is then why don’t you all yell simultaneously? he? Yes, Peter, thanks for working hard here. [Laughter] Like, really loudly—[laughter]— You get a lot of credit for making sure this and that way you might get noticed. thing works. And one of these days Laura Q. It doesn’t sound like you’re going to and I are looking forward to coming and ac- answer—— tually see what it’s like working here. I’ve The President. No, I will. I’ll, like, lis- never toured—I’ve never even been able to ten—— get beyond the podium—[laughter]—if you Q. And leave? know what I mean. As a matter of fact, I’ve The President. ——internalize, play like always felt comfortable behind the podium I’m going to answer the question, and then in front of you, kind of as a shield. [Laughter] smile at you and just say, gosh—[laughter]— But I would like a tour. thanks, thanks for such a solid, sound ques- Q. Bulletproof—— tion. The President. Well, it’s not exactly bul- Okay, here we go, ready? I’m going to cut letproof. Some of your bullets are able to— the ribbon. [Laughter] Then you yell. I cogi- verbal bullets—[laughter]—are able to pene- tate—and then smile and wave. [Laughter] trate. But you’ve been around a long time, Ready? Are you going to come, Laura? see, you know what it’s like to query Presi- Here we go. dents. You’ve been—you’re kind of an older [At this point, the President cut the ribbon.] fellow. [Laughter] Q. [Inaudible] Q. [Inaudible] The President. Yes, proudly so. Thanks The President. Brilliant question. for the birthday greeting too. I appreciate Q. [Inaudible]—cogitating that, right? that thoughtful gesture. The President. Thank you all. See you But anyway, we’re glad to join you for this soon. ribbon-cutting, and we thank you very much Q. We look forward to seeing you come for working with Hagin and the bunch to and do a little Q & A—— make sure this thing—deal works. And it’s The President. I will see you soon. Thank going to. And it’s going to make your life you. better, and frankly, it’s going to make the lives of future Presidents better as well. And NOTE: The President spoke at 8:05 a.m. In his remarks, he referred to Steve Scully, president, so it’s a good contribution that you all have Ann Compton, vice president, and Mark Smith, left behind. And we’re glad to have been a former president, White House Correspondents part of it. And so—— Association; and Peter Doherty, facilities and equipment manager, ABC News. White House Press Pool Q. What, do you think I’m going to ask a question? Remarks on the Office of The President. Yes. I do think you’re Management and Budget going to ask me a question, yes. [Laughter] Mid-Session Review Q. I am. [Laughter] July 11, 2007 The President. Well, maybe some other time. Thanks for coming. Please be seated. Q. Oh, but do you think you open—— Good afternoon. Welcome to the White The President. See what I’m saying? House. I’m glad you’re here. There are cer- [Laughter] tain traditions that all Americans look for- Q. You can’t come to the press room, espe- ward to: picnics with the family, Fourth of cially a modern press room—— July celebrations, and the Mid-Session Re- The President. Wait a minute, let’s do view. [Laughter] It’s the time for us to take this—let me cut the ribbon and—— a look at the Federal budget. Q. You think anything has changed? Maybe not all Americans look forward to The President. Let me cut the ribbon— it, but I’m looking forward to talking to the are you going to cut it with me, Steve—and American people about the progress we have

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made when it comes to growing our economy centives for small businesses to invest and and keeping their taxes low and being wise expand. about how we spend the money. The Mid- We believe ranchers and farmers and fam- Session Review is important. It lets the ily-business owners can make better deci- American people know how we’re doing in sions about the future than the Government meeting what we call ‘‘fiscal goals’’. And this can. That’s why we put the death tax on the year the message is unmistakable: America’s road to extinction. economy keeps growing; Government reve- We also believe taxpayers’ dollars should nues keep going up; the budget deficit keeps be treated with respect because Americans going down. And we’ve done it all without have worked hard to earn them. And we be- raising your taxes. lieve that taxpayers’ dollars should be spent And the person in charge with watching with restraint because Government programs the money here in the White House is Rob are not the solution to every problem. So Portman, Office of the Management and we’ve spent the money necessary to meet the Budget. Thank you for being here; appre- highest priorities of Government, including ciate your service. I’m proud to be here with protecting the homeland and supporting our Senator Thad Cochran from the great State men and women in uniform. Meanwhile, of Mississippi. Senator, thank you for joining we’ve tightened spending in other areas. us. Two Members from Congress, Jo Bonner Over the past 3 years, we’ve held the growth and Gresham Barrett; I thank you for taking of annual domestic spending close to one time to listen to this good news. I appreciate percent—well below the rate of inflation. all the business leaders and guests who have Some in Congress disagree with this ap- joined us today. proach. That’s what you expect in a democ- The release of the Mid-Session Review is a good opportunity to take stock of the de- racy. Not everybody agrees with what I have bate over taxes and spending in Washington. just described. They said it would not be pos- At its core, the debate is between two very sible to cut the deficit and deliver tax relief different economic philosophies and fiscal at the same time. They argued for increasing philosophies. One philosophy says that politi- taxes. Well, events have proven them wrong. cians in Washington know best, so taxes The critics can keep arguing with us, but they should be high and Government should de- can’t argue with the facts. cide where to spend the money. The other We began cutting the taxes in 2001, and philosophy says that the American people America’s economic growth—and America’s know how to spend their own money better economy has grown for more than 5 years than the Government does, so Government without interruption. Real after-tax income should spend less and the taxpayer should has increased nearly by 10 percent. That’s keep more. And that’s the fundamental de- an average of about $3,000 per person. Our bate here in the Nation’s Capital. economy has expanded by more than $1.9 For the past 6 years, my administration trillion. During the time when we cut taxes and our allies in Congress have pursued the to today, our economy has grown by more second philosophy. We believe the American than $1.9 trillion—this amount is larger than people can spend their money better than the entire economy of Canada. the Government can spend it. We believe Since the tax cuts took full effect in 2003, workers and families can spend their money our economy has added more than 8.2 mil- better than the Government, and that’s why lion new jobs. The unemployment rate has we doubled the child tax credit and reduced fallen to 4.5 percent; exports are up; the serv- the marriage penalty and cut tax rates for ice sector is strong; and more Americans are everybody who pays income taxes. working today than ever before in our Na- We believe that entrepreneurs can put tion’s history. their money to better use than the Govern- Behind these statistics are stories of hard- ment can. That’s what we believe, and we working Americans who are finding more op- acted on that belief. So we reduced taxes on portunity and feeling more secure about dividends and capital gains and created in- their future. And I’ve asked some of them

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to join me today, and I thank you all for being Washington don’t think $27,000 is a lot for here. a small business or $2,000 doesn’t amount First, I want to talk about Luther Russell. to much. Just ask these folks. It means a lot Luther is here; he owns a small family fenc- to them. And it means a lot to working people ing business. He is like millions of our fellow all across the United States that we cut the citizens who are small-business owners, and taxes, because men and women like these they’re working hard. They’re working hard here on this stage are powering our economic not only to provide security for their family; resurgence. That’s how the economy works. they’re providing employment for others. When you’ve got more money in your pock- The truth of the matter is, 70 percent of new ets to save, spend, or invest, this causes the jobs in America are created by small-business economy to grow. And we need to keep the owners, and it’s important to have fiscal pol- Government out of their wallets and out of icy that supports our small-business owners. their way in order to keep this economic re- We’ve got one right here with us: Luther covery strong. Russell, fence man. Our economic resurgence has also had a Thanks to our tax relief, last year he filed positive impact on the Federal budget. A an income tax, he saved $27,000. That’s what growing economy has led to growing tax reve- tax relief has done for the small business, be- nues. Because people are making more cause his business pays taxes at the individual money, they’re also paying more taxes. That income tax rates. See, when you cut indi- pie is growing. The tax rates remain the vidual income tax rates for everybody who same, but the pie is growing, which has yield- pays taxes and your business is set up so that ed more Federal revenues. Today’s Mid-Ses- you pay taxes like an individual does, you’re sion Review shows that this year’s Federal cutting taxes on this small-business owner. tax receipts are expected to be $167 billion I like the idea of us being able to meet our higher than last year’s. That’s an increase of spending priorities in Washington and Lu- nearly 7 percent. And over the last 3 years, ther having 27,000 more dollars in his pocket tax revenues have grown 37 percent. That’s to expand his business. That’s good for Amer- one of the highest jumps in revenues on ica. Gary and Elizabeth Comparetto are here. record. They’ve got 8 children, and they saved $8,000 These growing tax revenues, combined a year because of tax relief. Now, having 8 with spending restraint, are driving down the kids is an interesting challenge—[laughter]— Federal deficit. The Mid-Session Review es- made easier by the fact that because of our timates that this year’s deficit will drop to tax relief, this good family has got 8,000 addi- $205 billion. That’s down more than $200 bil- tional dollars so they can do their duty as lion from 2004. It’s down more than $43 bil- a mother and father. lion from last year. And it’s even down from Sharon Hawks is with us, serves in the Na- last February’s projections. More impor- tional Guard. Her family is saving $3,600 an- tantly, the size of the deficit is down to only nually on their taxes. I like the idea of our 1.5 percent of America’s economy. One way families having more money to be able to to be able to measure how we’re doing with set aside for education or set aside for savings the deficit relative to other years is to meas- or to be able to expand their home. When ure it as a percentage of GDP. We’re esti- I say I’d rather these people be spending mated to be at 1.5 percent of GDP. That’s their money than the Government spending well below the average of the last 40 years. their money, I mean it. It’s good for this We’ve achieved all this deficit reduction country that this tax relief is substantial and without once raising the taxes on the Amer- real for working people. ican people. Jennifer Zatkowski is with us. She saved It’s good news, but there’s more work to more than $2,000 a year on her taxes, and be done. A shrinking deficit is good; no def- she’s reinvesting the money to expand her icit is better. So earlier this year, I proposed pet shop. Tax relief makes a significant dif- a balanced budget that will eliminate the ference. Oh, I know, probably here some in Federal deficit by 2012. The deficit is not

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caused by undertaxing; it’s caused by over- is they can pass spending bills on time, in- spending. So the budget we proposed keeps stead of creating a massive bill at the end us on the path to low taxes and spending re- of the process that will be so large that no straint. And according to the Mid-Session one can possibly read it and anyone can hide Review, that path will lead to a surplus of wasteful spending in it. The Democrats $33 billion in 2012. In other words, despite should honor their commitment to fiscal dis- the unprecedented challenges we face, the cipline by passing these bills in a way that United States is going to be back in the black. sustains our growing economy and balances The policies of low taxes and spending re- the Federal budget. straint have produced a clear and measurable I’m going to work with members of both record of success. You can’t argue with what parties to achieve these goals, and as we do, I’m telling you. These are the facts. Yet, in there are other budget challenges we need the face of all the evidence, Democrats in to take on. Congress still want to take us down a dif- First, there’s the matter of earmarks. Ear- ferent path. We’ve shown what works. They marks are spending provisions that are must not believe us, because they passed a slipped into bills by individual Members of budget framework that calls for $205 billion Congress for projects in their own district or in additional domestic spending over the next State. They’re just slipped in the bill. Often, 5 years. The budget framework they passed the earmarks occur at the last hour and with- calls for 205 billion additional dollars of Fed- out debate. This violates the trust of the pub- eral spending in a 5-year period. That works lic and often leads to unnecessary spending. out to nearly $680 per person. It’s no surprise The problem is growing, and over the last that their budget framework also includes the decade, the number of earmarks has more largest tax increase in American history. than tripled. Some of this might sound familiar to some of you older hands around here—it’s the So earlier this year, I proposed reforms same old tax-and-spend policy that the that would make the earmark process more Democrats have tried before. It would have transparent, end the practice of concealing the same bad result. Tax-and-spend would earmarks in so-called report language, would add to the burden of families and businesses. eliminate wasteful earmarks, and cut the It would affect these good folks right here overall number and cost by at least half. on the stage. Tax-and-spend would put our Democrats and Republicans have taken a economic growth in jeopardy. Tax-and-spend good step by agreeing to list all earmarks be- would turn our back on the progress we’ve fore bills are passed so the public can see made on reducing the deficit. Tax-and-spend them and lawmakers have a chance to strike policies are policies of the past, and I’m going them down, get rid of them. Now Congress to use my veto to keep it that way. needs to uphold the commitment, and the The Democrats are also delaying the 12 Senate needs to make this transparency part basic spending bills that are needed to keep of its formal rules. The American people de- the Federal Government running. At their serve to know what they’re getting for the current pace, I am not likely to see a single money they’re sending to the Nation’s Cap- one of these must-pass spending bills before ital. There ought to be full disclosure and Congress leaves Washington for a 4-week re- full transparency in the appropriations proc- cess. And by the time they return, they will ess. have less than a month before the fiscal year The matter we need to confront as well, ends on September 30th to pass the appro- is the unsustainable growth of entitlement priations bills. programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and So- It’s important that they honor the pledges cial Security. As the Mid-Session Review they made when they took control of the makes clear, rising entitlement spending is Congress, and that is they pledged a policy by far the greatest long-term threat to Amer- of transparent government and fiscal respon- ica’s fiscal health. These programs are vital sibility. Well, now is the time to show that to the daily life of millions of Americans. they’re serious. And one way they can do so They are growing faster than the economy,

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faster than inflation, and faster than our abil- Statement on the Death of ity to pay for them. This isn’t going to be Lady Bird Johnson a Republican challenge or Democrat chal- July 11, 2007 lenge; this is really a generational challenge. And the fundamental question facing those Laura and I mourn the passing of our good of us in Washington today is whether or not friend and a warm and gracious woman, Lady we have the capacity and the will to confront Bird Johnson. Those who were blessed to the challenge now. know her remember Mrs. Johnson’s lively I believe we have a moral obligation to and charming personality, and our Nation deal with this problem, and that’s why I’ve will always remember her with affection. submitted proposals that will help deal with Mrs. Johnson became First Lady on a fateful these programs. Matter of fact, I remember day in November 1963 and was a steady, going to Congress and speaking very specifi- gentle presence for a mourning Nation in the cally about how to address the underlying days that followed. In the White House, Mrs. Johnson shared issues of Social Security so that older guys her love of the environment and nature with like me could look to young Americans like our entire country. The native wildflowers some of you here, and say, ‘‘We’ve done our that bloom along roadsides today are part of duty to fix this program once and for all.’’ her lasting legacy. She joined President John- And I call upon the Democrats in Congress son in the struggle for civil rights, inspiring to come forth with their ideas as how to fix millions of Americans. Her commitment to it, to step forward with some concrete, spe- early education gave many children a head cific proposals. I’ll be glad to listen to them, start in life. and I expect them to listen to mine. That’s President Johnson once called her a why we’re in Washington. We’re here to con- woman of ‘‘ideals, principles, intelligence, front problems today and not pass them on and refinement.’’ She remained so through- so somebody else has to deal with them. out their life together and in the many years The Federal budget can be complicated, given to her afterward. She was much-loved and making decisions about it can be quite in our home State of Texas, and the Bush contentious. Yet we know what it takes for family is fortunate to have known her. our economy to succeed. During these budg- Lady Bird Johnson leaves behind her de- et debates, it’s important to keep in mind voted daughters, Lynda and Luci, their fine the lessons of the past. As today’s Mid-Ses- families, and a nation that joins them in hon- sion Review makes clear, keeping taxes low oring a good life of kindness and service. and restraining spending leads to a vibrant NOTE: The Office of the Press Secretary also re- economy; it leads to new jobs; it leads to bet- leased a Spanish language version of this state- ter opportunities; and it leads to a shrinking ment. deficit. Progrowth policies work, and now is not the time to turn our back on them. I’m going Proclamation 8162—Death of to work with Republicans and Democrats Lady Bird Johnson alike to continue these policies so we can July 12, 2007 keep our economy competitive, so we can keep our economy growing, and so we can By the President of the United States remain the world leader for generations to of America come. A Proclamation I’m honored you guys are here. Thank you As a mark of respect for the memory of all for coming. God bless. Lady Bird Johnson, I hereby order, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution NOTE: The President spoke at 1:03 p.m. in Room and laws of the United States of America, 450 of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Of- that on the day of her interment, the flag fice Building. of the United States shall be flown at half-

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staff at the White House and upon all public of this new strategy is vital for protecting our buildings and grounds, at all military posts people and bringing our troops home, which and naval stations, and on all naval vessels is a goal shared by all Americans. I’ll brief of the Federal Government in the District you on the report we are sending to Con- of Columbia and throughout the United gress. I’ll discuss why a drawdown of forces States and its Territories and possessions that is not linked to the success of our oper- until sunset on such day. I also direct that ations would be a disaster. the flag shall be flown at half-staff for the As President, my most solemn responsi- same period at all United States embassies, bility is to keep the American people safe. legations, consular offices, and other facilities So on my orders, good men and women are abroad, including all military facilities and now fighting the terrorists on the frontlines naval vessels and stations. in Iraq. I’ve given our troops in Iraq clear In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set objectives. And as they risk their lives to my hand this twelfth day of July, in the year achieve these objectives, they need to know of our Lord two thousand seven, and of the they have the unwavering support from the Independence of the United States of Amer- Commander in Chief, and they do. And they ica the two hundred and thirty-second. need the enemy to know that America is not George W. Bush going to back down. So when I speak to the American people about Iraq, I often empha- [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, size the importance of maintaining our re- 8:45 a.m., July 16, 2007] solve and meeting our objectives. As a result, sometimes the debate over NOTE: This proclamation will be published in the Federal Register on July 17. Iraq is cast as a disagreement between those who want to keep our troops in Iraq and those who want to bring our troops home. The President’s News Conference And this is not the real debate. I don’t know July 12, 2007 anyone who doesn’t want to see the day when our brave service men and women can start The President. Good morning. Thank coming home. you. Yesterday America lost an extraordinary In my address to the Nation in January, First Lady and a fine Texan, Lady Bird John- I put it this way: If we increase our support son. She brought grace to the White House at this crucial moment, we can hasten the and beauty to our country. On behalf of the day our troops begin coming home. The real American people, Laura and I send our con- debate over Iraq is between those who think dolences to her daughters, Linda and Luci, the fight is lost or not worth the cost and and we offer our prayers to the Johnson fam- those who believe the fight can be won and ily. that, as difficult as the fight is, the cost of Before I answer some of your questions, defeat would be far higher. today I’d like to provide the American people I believe we can succeed in Iraq, and I with an update on the situation in Iraq. Since know we must. So we’re working to defeat America began military operations in Iraq, Al Qaida and other extremists and aid the the conflict there has gone through four rise of an Iraqi Government that can protect major phases. The first phase was the libera- its people, deliver basic services, and be an tion of Iraq from Saddam Hussein. The sec- ally in the war against these extremists and ond phase was the return of sovereignty to radicals. By doing this, we’ll create the condi- the Iraqi people and the holding of free elec- tions that would allow our troops to begin tions. The third phase was the tragic esca- coming home, while securing our long-term lation of sectarian violence sparked by the national interest in Iraq and in the region. bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra. When we start drawing down our forces We’ve entered a fourth phase: deploying in Iraq, it will because our military com- reinforcements and launching new oper- manders say the conditions on the ground ations to help Iraqis bring security to their are right, not because pollsters say it will be people. I’m going to explain why the success good politics. The strategy I announced in

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January is designed to seize the initiative and ple, Iraqis provided the three brigades they create those conditions. It’s aimed at helping promised for operations in and around Bagh- the Iraqis strengthen their Government so dad. And the Iraqi Government is spending that it can function even amid violence. It nearly $7.3 billion from its own funds this seeks to open space for Iraq’s political leaders year to train, equip, and modernize its forces. to advance the difficult process of national In eight other areas, the Iraqis have much reconciliation, which is essential to lasting se- more work to do. For example, they have curity and stability. It is focused on applying not done enough to prepare for local elec- sustained military pressure to rout out ter- tions or pass a law to share oil revenues. And rorist networks in Baghdad and surrounding in two remaining areas, progress was too areas. It is committed to using diplomacy to mixed to be characterized one way or the strengthen regional and international support other. for Iraq’s democratic Government. Those who believe that the battle in Iraq But doing all these things is intended to is lost will likely point to the unsatisfactory make possible a more limited role in Iraq performance on some of the political bench- for the United States. It’s the goal outlined marks. Those of us who believe the battle by the bipartisan Iraq Study Group. It’s the in Iraq can and must be won see the satisfac- goal shared by the Iraqis and our coalition tory performance on several of the security partners. It is the goal that Ambassador benchmarks as a cause for optimism. Our Crocker and General Petraeus and our strategy is built on a premise that progress troops are working hard to make a reality. on security will pave the way for political Our top priority is to help the Iraqis pro- progress. So it’s not surprising that political tect their population. So we have launched progress is lagging behind the security gains an offensive in and around Baghdad to go we are seeing. Economic development funds after extremists, to buy more time for Iraqi are critical to helping Iraq make this political forces to develop, and to help normal life progress. Today I’m exercising the waiver au- and civil society take root in communities and thority granted me by Congress to release neighborhoods throughout the country. a substantial portion of those funds. We’re helping enhance the size, capabili- The bottom line is that this is a preliminary ties, and effectiveness of the Iraqi security report, and it comes less than a month after forces so the Iraqis can take over the defense the final reinforcements arrived in Iraq. This of their own country. We’re helping the September, as Congress has required, Gen- Iraqis take back their neighborhoods from eral Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker will the extremists. In Anbar Province, Sunni return to Washington to provide a more com- tribes that were once fighting alongside Al prehensive assessment. By that time, we Qaida against our coalition are now fighting hope to see further improvement in the posi- alongside our coalition against Al Qaida. tive areas, the beginning of improvement in We’re working to replicate the success in the negative areas. We’ll also have a clearer Anbar and other parts of the country. picture of how the new strategy is unfolding Two months ago, in the supplemental ap- and be in a better position to judge where propriations bill funding our troops, Con- we need to make any adjustments. gress established 18 benchmarks to gauge the I will rely on General Petraeus to give me progress of the Iraqi Government. They re- his recommendations for the appropriate quired we submit a full report to Congress troop levels in Iraq. I will discuss the rec- by September the 15th. Today my adminis- ommendation with the Secretary of Defense tration has submitted to Congress an interim and the Joint Chiefs of Staff. I will continue report that requires us to assess—and I quote consultations with Members of the United the bill—‘‘whether satisfactory progress to- States Congress from both sides of the aisle, ward meeting these benchmarks is or is not and then I’ll make a decision. being achieved.’’ I know some in Washington would like us Of the 18 benchmarks Congress asked us to start leaving Iraq now. To begin with- to measure, we can report that satisfactory drawing before our commanders tell us we progress is being made in 8 areas. For exam- are ready would be dangerous for Iraq, for

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the region, and for the United States. It the American people do. But we need to en- would mean surrendering the future of Iraq sure that when U.S. forces do pull back, that to Al Qaida. It would mean that we’d be risk- terrorists and extremists cannot take control. ing mass killings on a horrific scale. It would The strategy that General Petraeus and the mean we’d allow the terrorists to establish troops he commands are now carrying out a safe haven in Iraq to replace the one they is the best opportunity to bring us to this lost in Afghanistan. It would mean increasing point. So I ask Congress to provide them with the probability that American troops would the time and resources they need. The men have to return at some later date to confront and women of the United States military an enemy that is even more dangerous. have made enormous sacrifices in Iraq. They The fight in Iraq is part of a broader strug- have achieved great things, and the best way gle that’s unfolding across the region. The to begin bringing them home is to make sure same region in Iran—the same regime in our new strategy succeeds. Iran that is pursuing nuclear weapons and And now I’ll be glad to answer a few ques- threatening to wipe Israel off the map is also tions, starting with Ms. Thomas [Helen providing sophisticated IEDs to extremists in Thomas, Hearst Newspapers]. Iraq who are using them to kill American soldiers. The same Hizballah terrorists who War on Terror in Iraq are waging war against the forces of democ- Q. Mr. President, you started this war, a racy in Lebanon are training extremists to war of your choosing, and you can end it do the same against coalition forces in Iraq. alone, today, at this point—bring in peace- The same Syrian regime that provides sup- keepers, U.N. peacekeepers. Two million port and sanctuary for Islamic Jihad and Iraqis have fled their country as refugees. Hamas has refused to close its airport in Da- Two million more are displaced. Thousands mascus to suicide bombers headed to Iraq. and thousands are dead. Don’t you under- All these extremist groups would be stand, you brought the Al Qaida into Iraq. emboldened by a precipitous American with- The President. Actually, I was hoping to drawal, which would confuse and frighten solve the Iraqi issue diplomatically. That’s friends and allies in the region. why I went to the United Nations and Nations throughout the Middle East have worked with the United Nations Security a stake in a stable Iraq. To protect our inter- Council, which unanimously passed a resolu- ests and to show our commitment to our tion that said disclose, disarm, or face serious friends in the region, we are enhancing our consequences. That was the message, the military presence, improving our bilateral se- clear message to Saddam Hussein. He chose curity ties, and supporting those fighting the the course. extremists across the Middle East. We’re also Q. But didn’t we go into Iraq—— using the tools of diplomacy to strengthen The President. It was his decision to regional and international support for Iraq’s make. Obviously, it was a difficult decision democratic Government. for me to make, to send our brave troops, So I’m sending Secretary Gates and Sec- along with coalition troops, into Iraq. I firmly retary Rice to the region in early August. believe the world is better off without Sad- They will meet with our allies, reemphasize dam Hussein in power. Now the funda- our commitment to the International Com- mental question facing America is, will we pact of Sharm el-Sheikh, reassure our friends stand with this young democracy? Will we that the Middle East remains a vital strategic help them achieve stability? Will we help priority for the United States. them become an ally in this war against ex- There is a conversion of visions between tremists and radicals that is not only evident what Iraqi leaders want, what our partners in Iraq, but it’s evident in Lebanon, the Pal- want, and what our friends in the region want estinian Territories, and Afghanistan? and the vision articulated by my administra- We’re at the beginning stages of a great tion, the Iraq Study Group, and others here ideological conflict between those who yearn at home. The Iraqis do not want U.S. troops for peace and those who want their children patrolling their cities forever, any more than to grow up in a normal, decent society and

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radicals and extremists who want to impose with Members of the Congress, both Repub- their dark vision on people throughout the licans and Democrats, as I make a decision world. Iraq is obviously—Helen, it’s got the about the way forward in Iraq. attention of the American people, as it And so I—you know, I value the advice should. This is a difficult war, and it’s a tough of those Senators. I appreciate their concerns war. But as I have consistently stated about the situation in Iraq, and I am going throughout this Presidency, it is a necessary to continue listening to them. war to secure our peace. Toby [Tabassum Zakaria, Reuters]. I find it interesting that as this young de- mocracy has taken hold, radicals and extrem- Public Opinion on Iraq/Progress in Iraq ists kill innocent people to stop its advance. Q. Mr. President, in addition to members And that ought to be a clear signal to the of your own party, the American public is American people that these are dangerous clamoring for a change of course in Iraq. people. And their ambition is not just con- Why are you so resistant to that idea, and tained to Iraq; their ambition is to continue how much longer are you willing to give the to hurt the American people. My attitude is, surge to work before considering a change we ought to defeat them there so we don’t in this policy? have to face them here, and that we ought The President. First, I understand why to defeat their ideology with a more hopeful the American people are—you know, they’re form of government. tired of the war. There is—people are—there Terry [Terence Hunt, Associated Press]. is a war fatigue in America. It’s affecting our psychology. I’ve said this before. I under- Congressional Opinion on Iraq stand that this is an ugly war. It’s a war in Q. Mr. President, you’re facing a rebellion which an enemy will kill innocent men, from Republican—key Republican Senators women, and children in order to achieve a who want you to change course and begin political objective. It doesn’t surprise me that reducing the U.S. combat role. Given the there is deep concern amongst our people. mixed report that you present today, how do Part of that concern is whether or not we you persuade Republicans to stick with you can win, whether or not the objective is as they look ahead to the next elections? achievable. People don’t want our troops in The President. A couple of things—first harm’s way if that which we are trying to of all, I respect those Republicans that you’re achieve can’t be accomplished. I feel the referring to. I presume you’re referring to same way. I cannot look a mother and father friends of mine, like Lugar—or Senator of a troop in the eye and say, ‘‘I’m sending Lugar, Domenici, yes. These are good, hon- your kid into combat, but I don’t think we orable people. I’ve spoken to them, and I can achieve the objective.’’ I wouldn’t do that listen very carefully to what they have to say. to a parent or a husband or a wife of a soldier. First of all, they share my concern that I believe we can succeed, and I believe a precipitous withdrawal would embolden Al we are making security progress that will en- Qaida. And they also understand that we able the political tract to succeed as well. And can’t let Al Qaida gain safe haven inside of the report, by the way, which is, as accurately Iraq. I appreciate their calls, and I appreciate noted, is being submitted today, is written their desire to work with the White House a little less than a month after the full com- to be in a position where we can sustain a plement of troops arrived. presence in Iraq. I went to the country in January and said, What I tell them is this—just what I’ve I have made this decision. I said what was told you—is that as the Commander in Chief happening on the ground was unsatisfactory of the greatest military ever, I have an obliga- in Iraq. In consultation with a lot of folks, tion, a sincere and serious obligation, to hear I came to the conclusion that we needed to out my commander on the ground. And I send more troops into Iraq, not less in order will take his recommendation, and as I men- to provide stability, in order to be able to tioned, to talk to Bob Gates about it, as well enhance the security of the people there. as the Joint Chiefs about it, as well as consult And David asked for a certain number of

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troops—David Petraeus asked for a certain will be in September, and I would just ask number—General Petraeus asked for a cer- that you give General Petraeus to come back tain number of troops, and he just got them and brief me. And then, of course, I’ll be a couple of weeks ago. glad to answer your questions along that line. Military—it takes awhile to move our Q. But there has been no substantial polit- troops, as the experts know. You just can’t ical progress, even with three-quarters of the load them all in one airplane or one big ship troops in there. and get them into theater. We had to stage the arrival of our troops. And after they ar- The President. Well, as I mentioned—— rived in Iraq, it took awhile to get them into Q. So will you keep that going through their missions. Since the reinforcements ar- September even if there isn’t? rived, things have changed. The President. Martha, as I mentioned For example, I would remind you that in my opening remarks, we have felt all along Anbar Province was considered lost. Maybe that the security situation needed to change some of you reported that last fall. And yet in order for there to be political progress. today, because of what we call bottom-up It’s very hard for a young democracy to func- reconciliation, Anbar Province has changed tion with the violence that was raging. Sec- dramatically. The same thing is now begin- ondly, there’s a lot of the past that needs ning to happen in Diyala Province. There are to be worked through the system. I mean, neighborhoods in Baghdad where violence is there’s—living under the brutal tyrant Sad- down. There are still car bombs, most of dam Hussein created a lot of anxiety and a which have the Al Qaida signature on them, lot of tensions and a lot of rivalry, and it’s but they’re declining. In other words, so just—it’s going to take awhile to work it there’s some measurable progress. through. But they couldn’t work through And you asked, how long does one wait? those tensions and rivalries in the midst of I will repeat, as the Commander in Chief serious violence. of a great military who has supported this And so the strategy was, move in more military and will continue to support this troops to cause the violence to abate. And military, not only with my—with insisting that’s what David Petraeus will be reporting that we get resources to them but with—by on. respecting the command structure, I’m going to wait for David to come back—David Yes, Jim [Jim Axelrod, CBS News]. Petraeus to come back and give us the report on what he sees. And then we’ll use that data Congressional Input Into the War on that—his report to work with the rest of the Terror Strategy military chain of command and Members of Q. Thank you, Mr. Bush. A question for Congress to make another decision if need you about the process you’re describing of be. your decisionmaking as Commander in Yes, Martha [Martha Raddatz, ABC Chief. Have you entertained the idea that at News]. some point, Congress may take some of that War on Terror Strategy sole decisionmaking power away through leg- Q. You talk about all the troops now being islation? And can you tell us, are you still in place and only in place the last 3 weeks committed to vetoing any troop withdrawal or a month. Yet three-quarters of the troops deadline? for the surge were in place during the period The President. You mean in this interim when this July interim report was written. period? Yes, absolutely. I don’t think Con- Are you willing to keep the surge going, no gress ought to be running the war; I think matter what General Petraeus says, if there they ought to be funding our troops. I’m cer- is no substantial Iraqi political progress by tainly interested in their opinion, but trying September? to run a war through resolution is a prescrip- The President. Thank you. You’re asking tion for failure, as far as I’m concerned, and me to speculate on what my frame of mind we can’t afford to fail.

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I’ll work with Congress; I’ll listen to Con- from which you quote. His answer was—his gress. Congress has got all the right to appro- comments to the Iraq Study Group were a priate money. But the idea of telling our mili- little more nuanced than the quotation you tary how to conduct operations, for example, read. or how to deal with troop strength is—I don’t He said that he made it clear the current think it makes sense. I don’t think it makes strategy in Iraq wasn’t working—this is his sense today, nor do I think it’s a good prece- recollection of the briefing to the Iraq Study dent for the future. And so the role of the Group. He briefed them to the fact it wasn’t Commander in Chief is, of course, to consult working and that we needed a change of di- with Congress. rection. He also said that those who suggest Q. So if Reed-Levin or anything like it that we back away and let the Iraqi Govern- were to pass and set a—— ment do it—this is in November 2006—let The President. Well, I would hope they the Iraqis handle it, don’t understand the in- wouldn’t pass, Jim. But I—— ability of the Iraq Government at that time Q. But what if they’ve got—— to take on that responsibility. The President. Let me make sure you un- He then went on to say—this is what he— derstand what I’m saying. Congress has all his recollection of his conversation—was that the right in the world to fund. That’s their our strategy needed to help get the violence main involvement in this war, which is to pro- down so that there could be political rec- vide funds for our troops. What you’re asking onciliation from the top down as well as the is whether or not Congress ought to be basi- bottom up. cally determining how troops are positioned There has been political reconciliation, or troop strength. And I just—I don’t think Martha, from the bottom up. Anbar Province that would be good for the country. is a place where the experts had—an expert David [David Gregory, NBC News]. had said that it was impossible for us to achieve our objective. This was the part of CIA Director Michael V. Hayden/ the country of Iraq where Al Qaida had made Situation in Iraq it clear that they would like to establish a Q. Mr. President, you’ve said many times safe haven from which to plan, plot further this war at this stage is about the Iraqi Gov- attacks and to spread their ideology through- ernment creating a self-sustaining, stable out the Middle East. Since then, since this government. Last November, your own CIA November 2006 report and since that state- Director, according to the Washington Post, ment to the Iraq Study Group, things have told you about that government, quote: ‘‘The changed appreciably on the ground in Anbar inability of the Government to govern seems Province. irreversible.’’ He could not point to any mile- And they’re beginning to have the same stone or checkpoint where we can turn this change, because the people on the ground thing around. And he said, in talking about there are sick and tired of violence and being the Government, that it’s balanced, but it threatened by people like Al Qaida, who have cannot function. no positive vision for the future. And there’s The President. Yes. been a significant turn, where now Sunni Q. When you heard that, since that point, sheikhs and Sunni citizens are working with you think of how many hundreds of soldiers the coalition to bring justice to Al Qaida kill- have been killed, how much money has been ers. And that same approach is being taken spent. Why shouldn’t people conclude that in Diyala. you are either stubborn, in denial, but cer- And so there’s a lot of focus, and should tainly not realistic about the strategy that be, frankly, on oil laws or elections. But re- you’ve pursued since then? member, there’s another political reconcili- The President. You know, it’s interesting; ation track taking place as well, and that’s it turns out, Mike Hayden—I think you’re the one that’s taking place at the grassroots quoting Mike Hayden there—was in this level. Mike Hayden talked about that as well. morning to give me his weekly briefing, and Q. But you think you’ve been realistic I asked him about that newspaper article about the strategy and what’s possible?

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The President. Well—thank you for the people who are responsible for the bombings followup—nothing has changed in the new taking place in Iraq? What evidence can you room. Anyway—yes. I mean, as I told you present? And also, are you saying, sir, that last November, right about this time, I was Al Qaida in Iraq is the same organization part of that group of Americans who didn’t being run by Usama bin Laden himself? approve of what was taking place in Iraq be- The President. Al Qaida in Iraq has sworn cause it looked like all the efforts that we allegiance to Usama bin Laden. And the guys had taken to that point in time were about who had perpetuated the attacks on Amer- to fail. In other words, sectarian violence was ica—obviously, the guys on the airplane are really raging. And I had a choice to make, dead, and the commanders, many of those and that was to pull back, as some suggested, are either dead or in captivity, like Khalid and hope that the chaos and violence that Sheikh Mohammed. But the people in Iraq, might occur in the capital would not spill out Al Qaida in Iraq, has sworn allegiance to across the country or send more troops in Usama bin Laden. And we need to take Al to prevent the chaos and violence from hap- Qaida in Iraq seriously, just like we need to pening in the first place, and that’s the deci- take Al Qaida anywhere in the world seri- sion I made. So it was a realistic appraisal, ously. by me. Let’s see here. Working my way around What’s realistic, as well, is to understand here. Sheryl [Sheryl Gay Stolberg, New York the consequences of what will happen if we Times]. fail in Iraq. In other words, people aren’t just going to be content with driving America out Confidence in the Iraqi Government of Iraq. Al Qaida wants to hurt us here. That’s their objective. That’s what they would like Q. Mr. President, in Jordan in November, to do. They have got an ideology that they you stood by Prime Minister Maliki and said, believe that the world ought to live under, he’s the right guy for Iraq. Given this report and that one way to help spread that ideology card today and given the lack of top-down is to harm the American people, harm Amer- political reconciliation, can you tell the ican interests. The same folks that are bomb- American people that you still believe he’s ing innocent people in Iraq were the ones the right guy for Iraq? who attacked us in America on September The President. I believe that he under- the 11th, and that’s why what happens in Iraq stands that there needs to be serious rec- matters to the security here at home. onciliation, and they need to get law passed; So I’ve been realistic about the con- firmly believe that. I have had a series of sequences of failure. I have been realistic conference calls with the Prime Minister as about what needs to happen on the ground well as the Presidency Council. The Presi- in order for there to be success. And it’s been dency Council, you would have the Presi- hard work, and the American people see it dent, Talabani, you’d have the two Vice as hard work. And one of the reason it is Presidents, Al-Mahdi and Hashimi, as well hard work is because on our TV screens are as the Prime Minister. And I have urged these violent killings perpetuated by people them to work together to get law passed. It’s who have done us harm in the past. And that not easy to get law passed through certain ought to be a lesson for the American people, legislatures, like theirs. There’s a lot of work to understand that what happens in Iraq and that has to be done. And I will continue to overseas matters to the security of the United urge, but—— States of America. Q. Do you have confidence in them? Yes, ma’am. The President. Let me—I’m almost through with the first one; I’ll come back to Al Qaida in Iraq the second one. But, sir, on that point, what evidence can And so I’ll continue to urge the Iraqis to you present to the American people that the show us that they’re capable of passing legis- people who attacked the United States on lation. But it’s not just us; it’s the Iraqi peo- September the 11th are, in fact, the same ple. And what really matters is whether or

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not life is improving for the Iraqi people on I’m aware of the fact that perhaps some- the ground. body in the administration did disclose the And, yes, I’ve got confidence in them, but name of that person, and I’ve often thought I also understand how difficult it is. I’m not about what would have happened had that making excuses, but it is hard. It’s hard work person come forth and said, ‘‘I did it.’’ Would for them to get law passed. And sometimes we have had this, you know, endless hours it’s hard work for people to get law passed of investigation and a lot of money being here. But that doesn’t mean that we spent on this matter? But it’s been a tough shouldn’t continue to work to achieve an ob- issue for a lot of people in the White House, jective, which is a government that is able and it’s run its course, and now we’re going to provide security for its people and to pro- to move on. vide basic services and, as importantly, serve Wendell [Wendell Goler, Fox News Chan- as an ally against these extremists and radi- nel]. cals. Yes, sir. War on Terror in Iraq Q. Mr. President, you have spoken pas- I. Lewis Libby sionately—— The President. Oh, I’m sorry, Jon [Jon Q. Thank you, Mr. President—— Ward, Washington Times]. Okay, yes. The President. No, not you. Michael [Mi- Q. Are you taking it away from me? chael Abramowitz, Washington Post]. The President. I am. This is—— Q. Oh. [Laughter] Q. After doing the ‘‘fair and balanced,’’ The President. Okay. Was that harsh? you’re going to take it away from me. [Laugh- Q. Yes. ter]. The President. Like the new hall, I should Q. Ohhh. [Laughter] have been more gentle. [Laughter] Do we Q. That was just a tease. ever use ‘‘kinder and gentler’’? No. Q. You’re going to come back to me, sir? Go ahead, Michael. And then you’re next. The President. You got the mike, then, Q. If I could just switch subjects for a sec- Jon, you’re next—a possession deal, you ond to another big decision you made re- know what I’m saying? [Laughter] cently, which was in the Scooter Libby case. Q. Thank you, sir. You have spoken pas- The President. Yes. sionately about the consequences of failure Q. You spoke very soberly and seriously in Iraq. Your critics say you failed to send in your statement about how you weighed enough troops there at the start, failed to different legal questions in coming to your keep Al Qaida from stepping into the void decision on that commutation. But one issue created by the collapse of Saddam’s army, that you did not address was the issue of the failed to put enough pressure on Iraq’s Gov- morality of your most senior advisers leaking ernment to make the political reconciliation the name of a confidential intelligence oper- necessary to keep the sectarian violence the ator. Now that the case is over—it’s not country is suffering from now from occur- something you’ve ever spoken to—can you ring. So why should the American people feel say whether you’re at all disappointed in the you have the vision for victory in Iraq, sir? behavior of those senior advisers? And have The President. Those are all legitimate you communicated that disappointment to questions that I’m sure historians will ana- them in any way? lyze. I mean, one of the questions is, should The President. Michael, I—first of all, the we have sent more in the beginning? Well, Scooter Libby decision was, I thought, a fair I asked that question, ‘‘Do you need more?’’ and balanced decision. Secondly, I haven’t to General Tommy Franks. In the first phase spent a lot of time talking about the testi- of this operation, General Franks was obvi- mony that people throughout my administra- ously in charge—and during our discussions tion were forced to give as a result of the in the runup to the decision to remove Sad- Special Prosecutor. I didn’t ask them during dam Hussein after he ignored the Security the time, and I haven’t asked them since. Council resolutions. My primary question to

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General Franks was, do you have what it Middle East. And this is what’s important for takes to succeed? And do you have what it the American people to understand: That vi- takes to succeed after you succeed in remov- olence and that chaos would embolden ex- ing Saddam Hussein? And his answer was, tremist groups, whether they be Shi’a or yes. Sunni, and they would then begin into com- Now, history is going to look back to deter- petition with each other. mine whether or not there might have been Such chaos and violence would send a a different decision made. But at the time, mixed signal to the Iranians, who have stated the only thing I can tell you, Wendell, is that that they believe Israel ought to be wiped I relied upon our military commander to off the map. People would begin to wonder make the proper decision about troop about America’s resolve. Al Qaida would cer- strength. And I can remember a meeting tainly be in a better position to raise money with the Joint Chiefs, who said, ‘‘We’ve re- and recruit. And what makes all this scenario viewed the plan.’’ I remember—and seemed doubly dangerous is that they have proven satisfied with it. I remember sitting in the themselves able to attack us and kill nearly PEOC, or the Situation Room, downstairs 3,000 of our citizens. And they would like here at the White House, and I went to com- to do it again. mander and commander that were all re- And therefore, the strategy has got to be sponsible of different aspects of the oper- to help this Government become an ally ation to remove Saddam. I said to each one against these people. What happens in of them, do you have what it takes? Are you Iraq—and I understand how difficult it’s satisfied with the strategy? And the answer been. It’s been hard. I have received a lot was, yes. of inspiration, however, from meeting with We have worked hard to help this country our troops, who understand the stakes of this reconcile. After all, they do have a modern fight, and meeting with their families. And Constitution, which is kind of a framework we owe it to our troops to support our com- for reconciliation. And after all, there was a manders, smart, capable people who are de- significant series of votes where the people vising a strategy that will enable us to succeed were given a chance to express their desire and prevent the conditions I just talked about to live in a free society. As a matter of fact, from happening. 12 million Iraqis went to the polls. Ed [Ed Chen, Bloomberg News]—no, Wendell, what happened then, of course, Jon. Just kidding there. is that the enemy, Al Qaida, attacks the Samarra mosque, which, of course, created Situation in Iraq anxiety and anger amongst the Shi’a. And Q. Thank you, Mr. President. Your admin- then all of a sudden, the sectarian violence istration has cited Al Qaida leaders, such as began to spiral. Reconciliation hadn’t taken Zawahiri, as saying that if we leave pre- hold deep enough in society to prevent this maturely, it would be a glorious victory for violence from taking hold. And so I have a— Al Qaida. But the reason that we can’t leave you know, I’ve got to decide whether or not or haven’t been able to leave is not because it’s okay for that violence to continue or we’re getting defeated in any way militarily; whether or not it makes sense for us to try it’s because the Iraqis can’t get it together to send more troops in to quell the violence, so far. So why can’t we counter those mes- to give the reconciliation process further sages and, obviously, not withdraw precipi- time to advance. tously, but begin some sort of gradual with- My concern is, is that as a result of violence drawal that prevents ethnic cleansing, but and killing, there would be chaos. Now, that’s also allows our military to get out? a state of affairs that thugs like Al Qaida need The President. Well, there’s a lot of dis- to survive. They like chaos. As a matter of cussion about a scenario in which our troop fact, they like to create chaos in order to cre- posture would be to guard the territorial in- ate conditions of fear and anxiety and doubt. tegrity of the country of Iraq, to embed and And out of that chaos would come—could train, to help the Iraqi security forces deal come a further escalation of violence in the with violent elements in their society, as well

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as keep enough Special Forces there to chase them down and bring them to justice before down Al Qaida. As a matter of fact, that is they come home to hurt us again. something that I’ve spoken in public about, And so it’s a—this is a serious issue that said that’s a position I’d like to see us in. is going to outlast my Presidency. As I say, However, I felt like we needed to send more this is the beginning stages of what I believe troops to be able to get the situation to quiet is a ideological conflict that—where you’ve down enough to be able to end in that posi- got a competing visions about what the world tion. ought to be like. What makes this more dif- And in terms of my own decisionmaking, ficult than previous conflicts is that there’s as I mentioned earlier, I definitely need to the asymmetrical use of power. In other be in consultation, and will be, with General words, IEDs and suicide bombers are the David Petraeus, who asked for the additional main tactical device used by these thugs to troops in the first place, troops which have try to achieve strategic objectives. been in place—fully in place for about 3 Their objective is to impose their vision weeks. on the world. Their objective is to drive the And so I would ask Members of Congress United States out of parts of the world. They to give the general a chance to come back want safe haven. They love a society where and to give us a full assessment of whether women have no rights, just like the society this is succeeding or not. And it’s at that point that they worked to impose with the Taliban in time that I will consult with Members of on the women of Afghanistan. That’s their Congress and make a decision about the way vision. And it’s in our interests to defend our- forward, all aiming to succeed in making sure selves by staying on the offense against them. that Al Qaida and other extremists do not And it’s in our interest to spread an alter- benefit from a decision I might have to make. native ideology. Mark [Mark Silva, Chicago Tribune]. We have done this before in our Nation’s Homeland Security/Democracy in the history. We have helped people realize the Middle East blessings of liberty, even though they may Q. Yes, sir, Mr. President. have been our enemy. And freedom has an The President. Yes, sir—— amazing way of helping lay the foundation Q. How—— for peace. And it’s really important, as we The President. ——Mark. [Laughter] head into this ideological struggle in the 21st Q. Thank you. Thank you, sir. How com- century, that we not forget that liberty can fortable are you—sir, how comfortable are transform societies. you with your Homeland Security Secretary Now, the interesting debate is whether or saying, in the face of no credible intelligence not a nation like Iraq can self-govern, wheth- of an imminent threat against the United er or not these people even care about lib- States, that he has a gut feeling that one is erty. As you’ve heard me say before, I be- coming this summer? And, sir, what does lieve—strongly believe that freedom is a uni- your gut tell you? versal value, that freedom isn’t just for Amer- The President. My gut tells me that— icans or Methodists, that freedom is universal which my head tells me as well—is that when in its application. And so when they voted we find a credible threat, I’ll share it with in ’05, I wasn’t surprised; I was pleased that people to make sure that we protect the the numbers were as big as they were, to homeland. My head also tells me that Al defy that many threats and car bombers, but Qaida is a serious threat to our homeland, I wasn’t surprised. and we’ve got to continue making sure we’ve And this is the real challenge we face. And got good intelligence, good response mecha- Iraq is just a part of a broader war against nisms in place; that we’ve got to make sure these jihadists and extremists, Mark. It is a— we don’t embolden them with—by failing in we will be dealing with this issue for awhile, certain theaters of war where they’re con- just like we dealt with other ideologies for fronting us; that we ought to continue to keep awhile. It takes time for ideologies to take the pressure on them. We need to chase root.

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I firmly believe that you’ll see the democ- that there be that solid connection of trust racy movement continue to advance through- between me and those who are in the field out the Middle East if the United States taking incredible risk. doesn’t become isolationist. That’s why I’ve And so, Ed, I’m going to wait to see what told you that I’m making sure that we con- David has to say. I’m not going to prejudge tinue to stay diplomatically involved in the what he may say. I trust David Petraeus, his region. Condi Rice and Bob Gates will be judgment. He’s an honest man. Those of you traveling there in early August to continue who have interviewed him know that he’s a to remind our friends and allies that we’re— straight shooter; he’s an innovative thinker. one, we view them as strategic partners; and I was briefed by members of the CODEL secondly, that we want them to work toward that came back that said that it appeared to a freer societies and to help this Iraqi Gov- them that our troops have high respect for ernment survive. It’s in their interests that our commanders in Baghdad, as do I. Iraq become a stable partner. Now, do you have a followup, perhaps an- And I believe we can achieve that objec- other subject, another area, another—— tive. And not only do I believe we can achieve; I know we’ve got to achieve the ob- Public Opinion/President’s jective, so we will have done our duty. This Decisionmaking is hard work. And one of the things I talked about in the opening comments was, do we Q. Same subject. do it now, or basically pull back, let the Gal- The President. Same questions? lup Poll, or whatever poll there are, decide Q. Different approach. the fate of the country? And my view is, is The President. Different approach. Yes, that if that were to happen, we would then okay. [Laughter] have to go back in with greater force in order Q. How hard is it for you to conduct the to protect ourselves, because one of the facts war without popular support? For you per- of the 21st century is that what happens over- sonally, do you ever have trouble balancing seas matters to the security of our country. between doing what you think is the right Ed. thing and following the will of the majority of the public, which is really the essence of President’s Upcoming Meeting With democracy? General David H. Petraeus The President. Yes, it is. And, first of all, Q. Good morning, Mr. President. Given I can fully understand why people are tired the events on the ground in Iraq and the of the war. The question they have is, can politics here at home, has U.S. military de- we win it? And of course I’m concerned ployment to Iraq reached the ceiling, or can about whether or not the American people you allow any further military escalation? are in this fight. I believe, however, that The President. You’re trying to do what when they really think about the con- Martha very skillfully tried to get me to do, sequences if we were to precipitously with- and that was to—— draw, they begin to say to themselves, maybe Q. Can I have a followup? we ought to win this; maybe we ought to have The President. Yes, you can, because a stable Iraq. you’re about to realize I’m not going to an- Their question, it seems like to me, is, can swer your question—[laughter]—except to we succeed? And that’s a very important, le- say this: There’s going to be great temptation gitimate question for anybody to ask. I think to—not temptation, there would be—you many people understand we must succeed, won’t be tempted; you will actually ask me and I think a lot of people understand we’ve to speculate about what David Petraeus will got to wait for the generals to make these talk to us about when he comes home. And military decisions. I suspect—I know this, I just ask the American people to understand Ed, that if our troops thought that I was tak- that the Commander in Chief must rely upon ing a poll to decide how to conduct this war, the wisdom and judgment of the military they would be very concerned about the mis- thinkers and planners. It’s very important sion. In other words, if our troops said, ‘‘Well,

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here we are in combat, and we’ve got a Com- tions is, will the decisions that we have made mander in Chief who is running a focus help secure our country for the long run? group. In other words, politics would be— And finally, another constituency is the is more important to him than our safety and/ enemy, who are wondering whether or not or our strategy,’’ that would dispirit our America has got the resolve and the deter- troops. mination to stay after them. And so that’s And there’s a lot of constituencies in this what I think about, Ed. fight. Clearly the American people, who are And, you know, I guess I’m like any other paying for this, is the major constituency. political figure; everybody wants to be loved, And I repeat to you, Ed, I understand that just sometimes the decisions you make and there—this violence has affected them. And the consequences don’t enable you to be a lot of people don’t think we can win. loved. And so when it’s all said and done, There’s a lot of people in Congress who don’t Ed, when you’ve—if you ever come down think we can win as well, and therefore, their and visit the old, tired me down there in attitude is, get out. Crawford, I will be able to say, I looked in My concern with that strategy—something the mirror and made decisions based upon that Mike Hayden also discussed—is that just principle, not based upon politics. And that’s getting out may sound simple, and it may important to me. affect polls, but it would have long-term, seri- Thank you all for your time. I loved being here at this new building. Thank you. ous security consequences for the United States. And so, Ed, sometimes you just have Resurgence of Al Qaida to make the decisions based upon what you Q. Can we just ask you about the Al Qaida think is right. My most important job is to intelligence report, please? help secure this country, and therefore, the The President. What was that? decisions in Iraq are all aimed at helping do Q. The intelligence—— that job. And that’s what I firmly believe. The President. This is amazing. A second constituency is the military. And Q. I know, I know. I repeat to you: I’m pretty confident our mili- The President. The new me. [Laughter] tary do not want their Commander in Chief The Al Qaida intelligence report. making political decisions about their future. Q. The intelligence analysts are saying Al A third constituency that matters to me Qaida has reconstituted in areas of Pakistan, a lot is the military families. These are good saying the threat to the West is greater than folks who are making huge sacrifices, and ever now, or as great as 2001. What’s hap- they support their loved ones. And I don’t pening—— think they want their Commander in Chief The President. Okay, here’s—— making decisions based upon popularity. Q. Okay, you tell us what the intelligence Another constituency group that is impor- analysts say. tant for me to talk to is the Iraqis. Obviously, The President. I’m glad you asked; thank I want the Iraqi Government to understand you. Thank you. I appreciate that opportunity that we expect there to be reconciliation top- to—— down, that we want to see laws passed. I Q. Thank you for coming back, sir. think they’ve got that message. They know The President. I’m happy to do it. This full well that the American Government and is not the new me. I mean, this is just, like, the American people expect to see tangible an aberration. In other words—— evidence of working together. That’s what Q. It’s over next time. the benchmarks are aimed to do. The President. ——I’m not going to leave But they also need to know that I am mak- and then come back because somebody yells ing decisions based upon our security inter- something at me. ests, of course, but also helping them suc- Q. Like China. ceed, and that a poll is not going to deter- The President. Yes, exactly. [Laughter] mine the course of action by the United Thank you. Thank you, David. I appreciate States. What will determine the course of ac- that. Exactly.

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There is a perception in the coverage that They’ll use hopelessness to be able to recruit. Al Qaida may be as strong today as they were And so it’s—thank you for asking that ques- prior to September the 11th. That’s just sim- tion. ply not the case. I think the report will say, Thank you all. since 2001, not prior to September the 11th, 2001. NOTE: The President’s news conference began at Secondly, that because of the actions we 10:31 a.m. in the James S. Brady Press Briefing have taken, Al Qaida is weaker today than Room at the White House. In his remarks, he referred to U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan C. they would have been. They are still a threat. Crocker; Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates; They are still dangerous. And that is why it Usama bin Laden, leader of the Al Qaida terrorist is important that we succeed in Afghanistan organization; Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, and Iraq and anywhere else we find them. President Jalal Talabani, and Vice Presidents Adil And that’s our strategy, is to stay on the of- Abd Al-Mahdi and Tariq al-Hashimi of Iraq; fense against Al Qaida. former Chief of Staff to the Vice President I. Elaine [Elaine Quijano, Cable News Net- Lewis Libby; Gen. Tommy R. Franks, USA (Ret.), work] asked the question, is it Al Qaida in former combatant commander, U.S. Central Iraq? Yes, it is Al Qaida, just like it’s Al Qaida Command; and President Pervez Musharraf of in parts of Pakistan. And I’m working with Pakistan. The President also referred to the amendment by Senators Harry Reid and Carl President Musharraf to be able to—he Levin to H.R. 2206. The Office of the Press Sec- doesn’t want them in his country; he doesn’t retary also released a Spanish language transcript want foreign fighters in his outposts of his of this news conference. country. And so we’re working to make sure that we continue to keep the pressure on Al Qaida. Proclamation 8161—Parents’ Day, But no question, Al Qaida is dangerous for 2007 the American people, and that’s why—as well July 12, 2007 as other people that love freedom—and that’s why we’re working hard with allies and By the President of the United States friends to enhance our intelligence. That’s of America why we need terrorist surveillance programs. That’s why it’s important for us to keep— A Proclamation another thing, I would hope Congress would On Parents’ Day, America honors our modernize that bill. And that’s why we’re mothers and fathers for their extraordinary keeping on the offense. devotion and for the great sacrifices they Ultimately, the way to defeat these radicals make to provide a hopeful and promising fu- and extremists is to offer alternative ways of ture for their children. life so that they’re unable to recruit; that they The guidance and unconditional love of can use—they like to use frustration and parents help create a nurturing environment hopelessness. The societies that don’t pro- so children can grow and reach their full po- vide hope will become the societies where tential. Parents work to impart to their chil- Al Qaida has got the capacity to convince a dren the strength and determination to fol- youngster to go blow himself up. What we low their dreams and the courage to do what need to do is help governments provide is right. They shape the character of their brighter futures for their people so they children by sharing their wisdom and setting won’t sign up. a positive example. As role models, parents And the fundamental question facing the also instill the values and principles that help world on this issue is whether or not it makes prepare children to be responsible adults and sense to try to promote an alternative ide- good citizens. ology. I happen to think it does. They say, My Administration is committed to ‘‘He’s idealistic.’’ Yes, I’m idealistic, but I’m strengthening American families by sup- also realistic in understanding if there is not porting Federal, State, and faith-based and an alternative ideology presented, these community programs that promote healthy thugs will be able to continue to recruit. marriages and responsible parenting. Parents

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are a child’s first teachers, and we recognize Memorandum on Waiver of their critical role in helping children do well Limitation on Obligation and in school. My Administration is committed Expenditure of $642.5 Million in to helping parents and schools ensure that Fiscal Year 2007 Economic Support every child has the best opportunity to learn Funds for Iraq and succeed. On Parents’ Day, we pay tribute to moth- July 12, 2007 ers and fathers and celebrate the special Presidential Determination No. 2007–27 bonds of love between parents and their chil- dren. We also express our deep gratitude to Memorandum for the Secretary of State parents who serve in the Armed Forces and those whose sons and daughters have an- Subject: Waiver of Limitation on Obligation swered the call to defend our country. Our and Expenditure of $642.5 million in Fiscal Nation is grateful for their honorable service Year 2007 Economic Support Funds for Iraq and for the sacrifices family members make Pursuant to the authority vested in me as as their loved ones work to advance the cause President by the Constitution and the laws of freedom. of the United States, including section Now, Therefore, I, George W. Bush, 1314(c)(2) of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Vet- President of the United States of America, erans’ Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Ac- by virtue of the authority vested in me by countability Appropriations Act, 2007 (Public the Constitution and laws of the United Law 110–28) (the ‘‘Act’’), I hereby waive the States and consistent with Public Law 103– requirements of section 1314(c)(1) for $642.5 362, as amended, do hereby proclaim Sun- million of Fiscal Year 2007 Economic Sup- day, July 22, 2007, as Parents’ Day. I call port Funds for Iraq and direct you to submit upon citizens, private organizations, and gov- to the Congress this determination along ernmental bodies at all levels to engage in with the certification in accordance with sec- activities and educational efforts that recog- tion 1314(c)(2) of the Act. nize, support, and honor parents, and I en- You are hereby directed to publish this de- courage American sons and daughters to con- termination in the Federal Register. vey their love, respect, and appreciation to their parents. George W. Bush In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twelfth day of July, in the year Message to the Congress of our Lord two thousand seven, and of the Transmitting the Initial Benchmark Independence of the United States of Amer- Assessment Report ica the two hundred and thirty-second. July 12, 2007 George W. Bush To the Congress of the United States: Consistent with section 1314 of the U.S. [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Care, Katrina 11:07 a.m., July 13, 2007] Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appro- priations Act, 2007 (Public Law 110–28) (the NOTE: This proclamation was published in the ‘‘Act’’), attached is the report that assesses Federal Register on July 16. the status of each of the 18 Iraqi benchmarks contained in the Act and declares whether satisfactory progress toward meeting these benchmarks is, or is not, being achieved. This report has been prepared in consulta- tion with the Secretaries of State and De- fense; Commander, Multi-National Forces— Iraq; the United States Ambassador to Iraq;

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and the Commander of United States Cen- vention will be submitted to the Congress tral Command. separately. This Convention is important in the cam- George W. Bush paign against international terrorism. I rec- ommend, therefore, that the Senate give The White House, early and favorable consideration to this Con- July 12, 2007. vention, subject to the understandings and reservation that are described in the accom- Message to the Senate Transmitting panying State Department report. the International Convention for the George W. Bush Suppression of Acts of Nuclear The White House, Terrorism July 12, 2007

July 12, 2007 NOTE: This item was released by the Office of the Federal Register on July 13. An original was To the Senate of the United States: not available for verification of the content of this I transmit herewith for Senate advice and message. consent to ratification the International Con- vention for the Suppression of Acts of Nu- clear Terrorism (the ‘‘Convention’’), adopted Remarks Following a Briefing By by the United Nations General Assembly on Provincial Reconstruction Team April 13, 2005, and signed on behalf of the Leaders and Brigade Combat United States of America on September 14, Commanders 2005. As of July 3, 2007, 115 countries have July 13, 2007 signed the Convention and 23 have sub- mitted their instruments of ratification or ac- As part of our strategy to succeed in Iraq, cession. The Convention entered into force I not only reinforced our military efforts with on July 7, 2007. I also transmit for the infor- more troops, we also surged civilians to work mation of the Senate a report of the Depart- with our military to help the reconciliation ment of State with respect to the Convention. efforts in a country that is still recovering The Convention imposes binding legal ob- from the tyranny of Saddam Hussein. ligations upon States Parties either to submit And today my Security Council here had for prosecution or to extradite any person a opportunity not only to speak with our Am- within their jurisdiction who commits ter- bassador in Iraq but also five members of rorist acts involving radioactive material or Provincial Reconstruction Teams, three civil- a nuclear device as set forth in Article 2 of ians and two military—colonels. They have the Convention, threatens or attempts to briefed us on the grassroots effort to improve commit such an act, participates as an accom- services, to improve the economy, to encour- plice, organizes or directs others to commit age local government, all aiming at enhanc- such an offense, or in any other way contrib- ing this concept of reconciliation from the utes to the commission of such an offense bottom up. by a group of persons acting with a common We heard from the PRT leader in Anbar. purpose, regardless of where the alleged act I had the honor of speaking to him months took place. ago, and now he has briefed us on the States Parties to the Convention will also progress that he has seen. Listen, there is be obligated to provide one another legal as- still a lot of work to be done. But these peo- sistance in investigations or criminal or extra- ple at the grassroots understand that most dition proceedings brought in respect of the Iraqis want to live in peace and that, with offenses set forth in Article 2, in conformity time, we’ll be able to help them realize that with any treaties or other arrangements that dream. may exist between them or in accordance And so I want to thank you once again with their national law. The recommended for your outstanding service to our Nation legislation necessary to implement the Con- in the cause of peace. What happens in Iraq

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matters to the United States of America. A Later, at Blair House, he and Mrs. Bush at- violent, chaotic Iraq will affect our security tended a reception for Counselor to the at home. An Iraq that can self-govern, pro- President Daniel J. Bartlett. vide basic services to its people, and be an The President announced his intention to ally in the war on terror will mean that all nominate Robin Renee Sanders to be Am- of us have accepted a great challenge and bassador to Nigeria. laid a foundation of peace for our children The President announced his intention to and grandchildren. nominate Diane D. Rath to be Assistant Sec- And so, thank you for your service. I ap- retary for Family Support at the Department preciate your—I want to thank your families of Health and Human Services. who are supporting you in this just and noble The President announced his intention to cause. And may God bless you all. Thank you. designate Reuben Jeffery III and Howard Radzely as members of the Board of Direc- NOTE: The President spoke at 10:30 a.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the White House. In his re- tors of the Overseas Private Investment Cor- marks, he referred to U.S. Ambassador to Iraq poration. Ryan C. Crocker. July 10 In the morning, the President had an intel- ligence briefing. Later, he traveled to Cleve- Digest of Other land, OH, where, upon arrival, he met with White House Announcements USA Freedom Corps volunteer Gerris Farris. He then traveled to Parma, OH. Later in the morning, the President trav- The following list includes the President’s public eled to Cleveland, OH, where, at Slyman’s schedule and other items of general interest an- Restaurant, he had lunch with community nounced by the Office of the Press Secretary and not included elsewhere in this issue. leaders. In the afternoon, the President toured the Cleveland Clinic. Later, he returned to July 7 Washington, DC. Upon arrival at Andrews In the morning, at Camp David, MD, the Air Force Base, he met with soldiers and ma- President had an intelligence briefing. rines injured in the war on terror. The President declared a major disaster in The President announced the designation Oklahoma and ordered Federal aid to sup- of the following individuals as members of plement State and local recovery efforts in a Presidential delegation to attend the open- the area struck by severe storms, flooding, ing ceremonies of the XV Pan American and tornadoes beginning on June 10 and con- Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 13: tinuing. Michael O. Leavitt (head of delegation); Clifford M. Sobel; Donna Richardson Joyner; July 8 George Prescott Bush; and Luis Tiant. In the afternoon, the President and Mrs. Bush returned to Washington, DC. July 11 July 9 In the morning, the President had an intel- In the morning, the President had an intel- ligence briefing. ligence briefing. Later, he traveled to Arling- The President announced his intention to ton, VA. He then returned to Washington, nominate Gene A. Cretz to be Ambassador DC. to Libya. In the afternoon, in the Map Room, the The President announced his intention to President participated in an interview with nominate Donald M. Kerr to be Principal Georgina Carnegie for the Australian pro- Deputy Director of National Intelligence at gram, ‘‘Visions of Leadership,’’ which will air the Office of the Director of National Intel- during the APEC summit in September. ligence.

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The President announced his intention to Nominations nominate Mark Kimmitt to be Assistant Sec- Submitted to the Senate retary of State (Political-Military Affairs). The President announced his intention to nominate John S. Bresland to be a member The following list does not include promotions of and chairperson of the Chemical Safety and members of the Uniformed Services, nominations to the Service Academies, or nominations of For- Hazard Investigation Board. eign Service officers. The President announced his intention to nominate Charles Russell Horner Shearer to be a member of the Chemical Safety and Submitted July 11 Hazard Investigation Board. John S. Bresland, The President announced his intention to of New Jersey, to be a member of the Chem- nominate Thomas C. Gilliland, William H. ical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board Graves, and Susan Richardson Williams to for a term of 5 years (reappointment). be members of the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority. John S. Bresland, The President announced his intention to of New Jersey, to be chairperson of the appoint Kyle E. McSlarrow, Ivan Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Seidenberg, and Mike Zafirovski as members Board for a term of 5 years, vice Carolyn of the President’s National Security Tele- W. Merritt, term expiring. communications Advisory Committee. Gene Allan Cretz, The President announced that he has des- of New York, a career member of the Senior ignated David Longly Bernhardt as Acting Foreign Service, class of Counselor, to be U.S. Commissioner of the Part of the United Ambassador Extraordinary and Pleni- States on the International Boundary Com- potentiary of the United States of America mission (U.S. and Canada). to Libya.

July 12 Thomas C. Gilliland, In the morning, the President had an intel- of Georgia, to be a member of the Board ligence briefing. of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Author- ity for the remainder of the term expiring The White House announced that the May 18, 2011, vice William Baxter, resigned. President will meet with United Nations Sec- retary-General Ban Ki-moon at the White William H. Graves, House on July 17. of Tennessee, to be a member of the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Author- July 13 ity for a term expiring May 18, 2012 (re- appointment). In the morning, the President had an intel- ligence briefing. Daniel D. Heath, In the afternoon, in the Roosevelt Room, of New Hampshire, to be U.S. Alternate Ex- the President participated in an interview ecutive Director of the International Mone- with Fred Barnes, Stephen F. Hayes, and tary Fund for a term of 2 years, vice William Kristol of the Weekly Standard; Mi- Margrethe Lundsager, term expired. chael Barone of U.S. News & World Report; Charles Krauthammer of the Washington Donald M. Kerr, Post; Larry Kudlow, Rich Lowry, and Kate of Virginia, to be Principal Deputy Director O’Beirne of the National Review; and syn- of National Intelligence, vice General Mi- dicated columnist Kathleen Parker. chael V. Hayden, U.S. Air Force, resigned.

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Mark Kimmitt, Released July 9 of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary of Transcript of a press briefing by Press Sec- State (Political-Military Affairs), vice John retary Tony Snow Hillen, resigned. Fact sheet: White House Conference on the Diane D. Rath, Americas of Texas, to be Assistant Secretary for Family Support, Department of Health and Human Text: Letter from Counsel to the President Services, vice Wade F. Horn, resigned. Fred F. Fielding to Senator Patrick J. Leahy and Representative John Conyers, Jr. Robin Renee Sanders, of New York, a career member of the Senior Released July 10 Foreign Service, class of Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Pleni- Transcript of a press gaggle by Deputy Press potentiary of the United States of America Secretary Scott M. Stanzel to the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Fact sheet: A Day in Cleveland: President Bush Calls on Congress To Act To Fund Vital Charles Russell Horner Shearer, Priorities of Delaware, to be a member of the Chem- ical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board Released July 11 for a term of 5 years, vice Carolyn W. Mer- ritt, term expiring. Transcript of a press briefing by Press Sec- retary Tony Snow Susan Richardson Williams, of Tennessee, to be a member of the Board Transcript of a press briefing by Office of of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Author- Management and Budget Director Robert J. ity for a term expiring May 18, 2012 (re- Portman on the Federal budget appointment). Fact sheet: Growing Economy and Fiscal Submitted July 12 Discipline Working To Reduce Budget Def- icit Thomas P. O’Brien, Fact sheet: The 2007 Renovation of the of California, to be U.S. Attorney for the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room Central District of California for the term of 4 years, vice Debra W. Yang, resigned. Released July 12 Edward Meacham Yarbrough, Statement by the Press Secretary: Visit by of Tennessee, to be U.S. Attorney for the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Middle District of Tennessee for the term Ki-moon of 4 years vice James K. Vines, resigned. Released July 13 Transcript of a press briefing by Press Sec- retary Tony Snow Checklist of White House Press Releases Statement by the Press Secretary: Mozam- bique Signs $507 Million Millennium Chal- lenge Compact The following list contains releases of the Office of the Press Secretary that are neither printed as Statement by the Press Secretary announcing items nor covered by entries in the Digest of that the President signed S. 277 Other White House Announcements. Fact sheet: Expanded Provincial Reconstruc- tion Teams Speed the Transition to Self-Reli- Released July 7 ance Statement by the Press Secretary on disaster Text: Interview with National Security Ad- assistance to Oklahoma viser Stephen J. Hadley by NPR

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Acts Approved by the President

Approved July 13

S. 277 / Public Law 110–47 Grand Teton National Park Extension Act of 2007

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