For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
June 21, 2005
Press Briefing by Scott McClellan
James S. Brady Briefing Room
12:21 P.M. EDT
MR. McCLELLAN: Good afternoon, everybody. I want to make one
announcement: Following the G8 summit in Scotland, Mrs. Bush will
depart for a trip to Africa. The details and itinerary of the trip are
still being finalized, but the trip is an opportunity for Mrs. Bush to
talk about the importance of education, to highlight the progress being
made on the President's HIV/AIDS initiative, and to discuss women's
rights. And once those details are finalized, I am sure that Mrs.
Bush's office will get them to everybody.
And with that, I am glad to go to your questions.
Q Scott, will the President withdraw John Bolton, or will he make a recess appointment?
MR. McCLELLAN: We continue to urge the Senate to give John Bolton
an up or down vote. John Bolton deserves an up or down vote on the
floor of the Senate. He enjoys majority support -- I think that is
clear to everybody. We have continued to work in good faith to address
any remaining issues that may be out there. But it's clear that a
minority of Democratic leaders are intent on blocking his nomination
and preventing him from getting to work advancing comprehensive reform
at the United Nations.
It is a critical time at the United Nations. We have outlined a
package of comprehensive reform for making the United Nations a more
effective organization. And it's important that we get him in place so
that he can get about doing that work. And it's really unfortunate
that the minority of Senate Democrats have continued to block this
nomination from moving forward.
Q So how will you break the impasse?
MR. McCLELLAN: We will continue to talk with the Senate
leadership; we'll continue to reach out to those who are interested and
recognize that we have worked in good faith to address these issues.
It's clear that the Democratic leadership is not interested in finding
a middle ground; they're not interested in information. The
information has been provided and made available to people. They're
simply interested in blocking this nomination and preventing John
Bolton from getting to the U.N., where he can begin advancing the
comprehensive reforms we have outlined. And we'll continue working
with the Senate leadership to work on moving forward on his
nomination.
Q Scott, it's not just the Democratic leadership or members of
the Democratic Party -- it's members of the President's own party, some
of which are calling for him to withdraw the nomination. So is he
going to heed those calls or not?
MR. McCLELLAN: No, that's not correct, Jennifer. It's a minority
of Senate Democrats that are preventing this nomination from moving
forward. It's very clear that he has --
Q Senator Voinovich is a Republican.
MR. McCLELLAN: It's very clear that he has majority support.
You're talking about one individual who has expressed his opposition to
his nomination. But it is a minority Senate Democratic leadership that
is preventing this nomination from moving forward and that is
preventing from [sic] John Bolton getting about, doing the important
work of reform at the United Nations.
Let me point out to you that Senator Roberts, just last week,
worked to reach a reasonable compromise. But it was clear then that
some of the Democratic leaders were simply not interested in
information. They were simply interested in blocking this nomination
and playing partisan politics. Senator Rockefeller saw the information
that was originally in question and said there was nothing improper
about these requests. He informed Democrats of that.
Q So are you saying that there's no talk of withdrawing Bolton?
MR. McCLELLAN: We continue to urge an up or down vote. He will be
a strong advocate for reform at the United Nations. No, in answer to
your question.
Q What is your strategy, then? Are you going to try and convert
individual Democrats? Because otherwise you have no alternative except
a recess appointment.
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, you know, Bill, there was a recent agreement
on judges, and I think it showed a spirit of bipartisanship and a
spirit of goodwill between Republicans and Democrats who were
interested in getting things done in the United States Senate. The
President is interested in getting things done in the United States
Senate. By continuing to block this nomination now, two months into
it, Democrats are really preventing us from moving forward in a timely
way on other matters, and they're preventing us from moving forward as
strongly as we would like to at the United Nations on comprehensive
reform. And there are some Democrats that have turned away from the
Democratic leadership and said he deserves an up or down vote. And
it's not that many more that is required to move forward on this
nomination.
Q So what incentive might the White House offer to gain such a
coalition?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think the American people expect better.
And let's call it what it is -- this is simply an effort to block the
nomination of John Bolton and play partisan politics. It's nothing but
that. We've got important work to do at the United Nations when it
comes to reforming it and making it more effective and making it work
better. And John Bolton is the kind of guy we need there to do that.
Go ahead.
Q Is the President concerned about the recruitment being down in his home country, he can't get -- you know, some day you may give a war
and no one will come? And, also, the second part of the question, is
there any member of the Bush clan who is in the military service now,
that you know of?
MR. McCLELLAN: I'd have to go check; that's a pretty large clan,
as you --
Q Would you do that?
MR. McCLELLAN: -- as you referred to. In terms of -- and
certainly there are members of the family that have served and served
very admirably in the Armed Forces.
Q I'm not talking about the past, I'm talking about now.
MR. McCLELLAN: And in terms of your question on recruitment and
the recruiting efforts, I think the Department of Defense has briefed
on that recently and they've talked about their efforts to address some
of the concerns that you bring up. I would refer you --
Q I asked if the President was concerned.
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, it's something he talks to his military
leaders about, and they keep him apprised of their efforts.
Q Is the President concerned?
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry?
Q Is the President concerned?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, it's something he's kept apprised about, but
I think you ought to look at the Department of Defense, and the way
they have characterized it is the way I would --
Q I heard -- I heard Rumsfeld on the --
MR. McCLELLAN: -- is the way I would characterize it. They
briefed on it recently, and they talked about their efforts to do a
better job of recruiting people to volunteer for the military forces.
Q Did the President raise human rights concerns with the
Vietnamese leader?
MR. McCLELLAN: They did discuss the importance of continuing to
move forward on improving human rights and expanding religious
freedom. The government of Vietnam has taken some steps recently to
allow for the opening of more churches and to allow for people to
worship more freely. And the President -- one of the points he made to
the Prime Minister was that as you continue to move forward on
improving human rights and expanding religious freedom, you will only
realize better relations with the United States and with the
international community. So it is an important matter. They had an
open and candid discussion about it and the President welcomed the
steps that Vietnam has taken recently, and we encourage them to
continue on that path and do more.
Q Do they have to take steps such as these to qualify for
membership in the WTO?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, there is obligations for joining the WTO.
And I think one of the things also that the Prime Minister brought up
was their desire to see Vietnam recognized as a market economy. And,
first of all, there are rules set in law that have to be met for us to
do that. And I think that goes hand in hand with some of their
obligations to join the WTO, as well as the progress that they make on
human rights and religious freedom.
Go ahead, John.
Q I have two brief questions, Scott. You said on Thursday, as
we got closer to the Prime Minister's visit, to bring this up again.
MR. McCLELLAN: We're closer.
Q Okay. Well, we're here. The President has met with
opposition leaders in other countries that have strong man rule. Burma
and Uzbekistan come to mind immediately. Will he meet with the exiled
opposition leaders of Vietnam, in particular -- and I'm going to spell
this -- Mr. Chanh, C-h-a-n-h, Nguyen, N-g-u-y-e-n, whose democratic
exile groups claims 18 million people?
MR. McCLELLAN: I don't have anything to update you on in terms of
the President's schedule. But the President regularly meets with civil
society leaders from different countries, and he meets with opposition
leaders frequently, as well. The visit today was a good and
constructive meeting, that's the way I would describe it. They had a
very good discussion, and they talked about ways we can continue to
strengthen our partnership. They talked about a number of important
issues.
And they talked about, as Steve was bringing up, the importance of
continuing to move forward on reform. The Prime Minister talked about
their commitment to moving forward not only on economic reform, but
social and political reform, as well. So I think you have to look at
the visit in the context that it was just 10 years ago that we restored
diplomatic ties with Vietnam. And the President believes meetings such
as this are an opportunity to have an open and candid discussion about
our relationship and about our concerns. And that's what they did.
Q But would he open to meeting --
MR. McCLELLAN: John, I don't have anything to update on the
President's schedule about specific individuals, but we'll keep you
posted on that.
Q The other question I had was -- and I thought of this when you
mentioned the First Lady's upcoming trip to Africa. He's put a lot of
emphasis on Africa, the President has, and yet just last week the head of the Millennium Challenge Account, that Dr. Rice explained to us in terms of its significance toward Africa, resigned after only 18 months. Why did the head of the Millennium Challenge Account leave, and have you picked a successor?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, first of all, we appreciate his service and
his efforts to get the Millennium Challenge corporation up and
running. He expressed in his letter of resignation that he would work
to make sure that the transition was smooth and that there would be an
appropriate time period for a transition. So we will -- we are moving
forward on his replacement.
The Millennium Challenge Account is one of the key initiatives in
our foreign development and aid programs that the President launched.
And we are strongly committed to moving forward more quickly to certify
countries so that they can receive aid under the Millennium Challenge
Account. This is an important initiative that says we want to make
sure that the money that we're providing, the United States, is going
to achieve results to help people in need and that it's going to
countries that promote good governance, rule of law, transparency, that
are committed to fighting corruption and that are committed to moving
forward on freedom and human rights, and on things of that nature.
So this is an important initiative. The President had a very good
discussion with some African leaders about it last week and talked
about his commitment -- and the Secretary of State's commitment -- to
accelerating our efforts to certify countries and get aid delivered to
those who need it under the Millennium Challenge Account.
Now there are a lot of initiatives we have -- or a number of
initiatives, I should say, we have to provide assistance to the
continent of Africa and to countries in Africa. This President is
strongly committed to helping the people of Africa. We have tripled
aid since he came into office. We are committed to fighting poverty
and combating hunger. We just announced the additional $674 million to
go to countries in the Horn of Africa that are facing a severe
situation when it comes to hunger. They're facing famine and we need
to get that aid to them now and that's what we're working to do.
Q Thank you.
MR. McCLELLAN: Go ahead, Carl.
Q Social Security, Scott. Some Republican Senate leaders are beginning to signal some emerging consensus, or at least somewhat measured renewed support for Jim DeMint's proposal for personal accounts paid for by the Social Security surplus, as opposed to from, sort of, concurrent Social Security tax withholdings. Can you give us
an assessment of the President's view and the administration's take on
personal accounts as financed through the Social Security surplus?
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm not sure I've seen reports about a proposal.
I'm not sure the actual -- any actual proposal has been put forward.
Obviously, we welcome all ideas for moving forward to save and
strengthen Social Security for future generations. This is a high
priority for the President, and I think you see a lot of discussions
going on because Congress is holding hearings, and the Senate
leadership under Chairman Grassley, and the House leadership under
Chairman Thomas, are looking at ways to move forward and get something
done this year.
This is a high priority for the President. We believe very
strongly that Social Security needs to not only be made permanently
sound, but that it should be made a better deal for future generations,
and that means personal retirement accounts. Younger workers ought to
have the voluntary option to invest in personal retirement accounts.
They are an important part of the solution. And we've pointed out how
we believe that ought to be part of the payroll tax structure.
Q So would funding payroll -- excuse me, personal accounts
protect Social Security for future generations and deal with Social
Security's solvency issue in an effective way, in the administration's
view, if it's through the Social Security surplus?
MR. McCLELLAN: Like I said, I don't know that a specific proposal
has been put forward at this time. I've seen reports about it, and we
appreciate those who are committed to moving forward on legislation
that will save Social Security. And we'll continue working with all
those who want to get something done. The President has put forward
his proposal and his ideas for advancing a bipartisan solution and
solving this problem for the American people, and that's what the
American people expect. And so we want to continue reaching out and
working with all those who want to get something done.
Q Has the President decided yet on a venue for next Tuesday's
speech on Iraq policy?
MR. McCLELLAN: There's nothing to announce on the schedule at this
point.
Q Is it a televised address?
MR. McCLELLAN: As you are aware, we put out the week ahead on
Friday, typically, and I'm sure that we will keep you updated on his
schedule once we're ready to announce that. But it will be a speech at
a specific event site.
Q Scott, can we get a clear "yes" or "no" answer on whether the
President agrees on the Vice President's assessment that the insurgency
is in "its last throes?" Is it a "yes" or "no"?
MR. McCLELLAN: I think I already answered this question the last
couple of days.
Q Is it "yes" or is it "no"?
MR. McCLELLAN: And I've talked about it the last couple of days.
If you look -- if you look at the terrorists and the regime elements
that are seeking to derail the transition to democracy, they are in a
desperate mode, and here's why. Let me walk you through this.
First of all, I think, to begin with, you ought to go back and look
back at the full context of the Vice President's remarks, where he
talked about the progress we're making to go after and capture al Qaeda
elements that are inside Iraq -- like Zarqawi lieutenants. Just last
week, we captured one of his top lieutenants, a very dangerous man who
is responsible for the killing of a lot of innocent civilians inside
Iraq. This was the person who oversaw Zarqawi's Mosul operations. And
that was a significant development.
So I think you have to look at the facts on the ground. And the
facts on the ground show that the Iraqi people are making important
progress on the political front to build a free and democratic future.
The vision of the terrorists is one of chaos and destruction. They
really have no vision. Their only alternative is chaos and destruction
and the killing of innocent civilians.
And that's what I talked about yesterday. They, every step of the
way, have not been able to stop the progress that the Iraqi people are
making on the political front. And they are being defeated and they
will be defeated.
Q So that's a "yes"?
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, I said that. I said that the other day.
Q A couple of things. First, on the calls by a number of
members of Congress for some kind of independent commission to look
into the question of detainees, interrogation centers, Guantanamo, et
cetera, what's the White House's decision on establishing something
like that?
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry, establishing a what?
Q Some sort of independent commission to look into the question
of how detainees and those who are being interrogated and held in places like Guantanamo and other places are being treated?
MR. McCLELLAN: I think there have been 10 such investigations
launched -- major investigations launched by the Department of
Defense. They have looked into these issues. They continue to look
into allegations of abuse. People are being held to account, and we
think that's the way to go about this.
Q So you would rule out supporting any sort of independent or
bipartisan commission?
MR. McCLELLAN: I would say the Department of Defense has worked to address these issues and hold people accountable and take steps to
prevent abuse from happening again where it has occurred.
Q But since the Defense Department has a role in managing these
centers, are they really able to take an independent look at what's
happening?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, but look at who they have appointed to head
up some of these major investigations. You ought to go look back at
some of the reports that have been published on these allegations of
abuse. See, our military is committed to adhering to the highest
standards of conduct, and they're committed to upholding our laws and
our values. And we appreciate the standards that our men and women in
uniform adhere to. And in terms of -- are you talking about
allegations of abuse at Guantanamo Bay?
Q Well, among others.
MR. McCLELLAN: I mean, those allegations of abuse have been looked
into, and I think if you look at the number of people, it's a
relatively small number of people that have been involved in any
wrongdoing, and they've been held accountable. And that's what the
President expects. So I think the Department of Defense has taken
these issues head on and addressed them.
Q So no need for any sort of independent look into any of these
--
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, the Department of Defense, if there are any
additional allegations of abuse, they'll continue to look into them.
But they have appointed individuals also to take an independent look at
these matters. And you ought to go back and look at -- they've briefed
on these issues and pointed that out.
Q Secondly, earlier you said that the Democrats were motivated
by partisan politics on Bolton. Would you apply that specifically to Senator Biden, and do you think his presidential aspirations are part of what's going on here?
MR. McCLELLAN: I'd say the minority Senate Democratic leadership
is playing politics with his nomination. I don't think I need to get
into individuals here, but look at what has been done. We have worked
in good faith to address issues that they claimed they still had that
they wanted to see addressed. Look at what Senator Roberts did. Andy
Card had a discussion with Senator Biden just yesterday. But it's
clear that the Democratic leadership is not interested in meeting
anybody halfway, they're simply interested in blocking this nomination
and preventing John Bolton from going about to implement reform at the
United Nations.
Q Scott, on Guantanamo and Africa -- President Bush's new friend, Bill Clinton, has said that Guantanamo needs to be cleaned up or closed. What are your thoughts about that, as you're saying that the allegations have been looked into?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I'm not sure specifically what he's referring
to.
Q He's referring to the abuse and the problems at Guantanamo
Bay.
MR. McCLELLAN: And what abuse are you referring to?
Q The abuse of the prisoners, the fact that the prisoners, some
of them -- you still have, what is it, 500 --
MR. McCLELLAN: So you can't point to anything specifically.
Q There's a whole bunch of things you can point to and I'm
trying to --
MR. McCLELLAN: A whole -- no, April, that's not correct, because
let me tell you about the ways detainees are treated at Guantanamo
Bay. They are treated humanely, and that has always been the policy at
Guantanamo Bay. And it is a policy that was set out early on in this
administration to deal with these detainees. Now, these detainees are
dangerous enemy combatants. They are at Guantanamo Bay for a reason.
They were picked up on the battlefield fighting American forces, trying
to kill American forces. They are individuals who seek to do harm to
the American people. One individual, al-Qahtani, who has come up in
the news recently, was someone who we believe wanted to be part of the
September 11th hijackings. These are very dangerous individuals. They
have provided us with valuable intelligence to disrupt and prevent
attacks from happening in the first place.
So let's be clear about who these are and let's be clear about our
men and women in uniform and the standards that they adhere to. The 99
percent-plus of our men and women in uniform adhere to the highest
standards, and they believe it's very important to uphold our laws and
our values. And they do that every day wherever they are serving.
Q So is Bill Clinton wrong in his assessment that it should be
cleaned up or closed?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I asked you what specifically are you
referring to, and you said --
Q All of the problems that have been happening at Guantanamo Bay
with these people that you have detained. You've let how many go --
MR. McCLELLAN: "All of these problems"? Now, what are you
referring to? I think the Department of Defense has pointed out the
relatively small number of people that have actually been involved in
wrongdoing.
Q Well, since you won't respond to Bill Clinton's statement,
let's go to Africa.
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm responding to the facts.
Q Okay. Well, Tony Blair says if it was any other country, the
problems of poverty and warring would not happen; the world community
would not let it happen. I'm asking you, in this White House -- who
some consider is not a friend to minorities, particularly African
Americans -- do you feel that --
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry?
Q Some, I said, some consider are not a friend to African
Americans. Do you feel that the problem --
MR. McCLELLAN: I mean, it's one thing to make a statement of
generalities, but maybe we ought to point at specifics, April.
Q Can I finish -- can I finish? You will understand what I am
saying. Do you consider that the problems with Africa, the poverty situation and the fact that the civil wars that have been going on in Africa, that are currently going on in Africa, do you consider the fact
that they have been somewhat -- people have walked away, some countries have walked away from the problems because of the racism, a bit of racism?
MR. McCLELLAN: I ask you to consider the facts. This President
has made Africa a top priority in his foreign policy. And this
President has made an unprecedented commitment to combating the scourge of HIV/AIDS that has afflicted many countries on the continent of
Africa. We have made a strong commitment to helping people in need in
Africa and providing assistance to those who are hungry and to those
who are living in poverty in developing countries. We have tripled
assistance to Africa under the President of the United States. We are
going to continue to make a significant contribution to Africa through
our aid and assistance programs.
I pointed out earlier in this briefing that not only have we
tripled development aid, but we've also established the Millennium
Challenge Account, we established the President's HIV/AIDS initiative,
the emergency relief plan for HIV/AIDS. So I think you should look at
the facts and the record of the President, because the President's
record --
Q -- not just the United States.
MR. McCLELLAN: -- the President's record is a strong one when it
comes to supporting the people of Africa.
Q Not just the United States.
MR. McCLELLAN: We've also worked very closely with African leaders
on resolving conflicts on the continent of Africa. And it's important
--
Q Can you specifically say --
MR. McCLELLAN: Let me -- let me finish. You brought this up, and
I think it's important to make clear what the record is because it's a
strong record and it's going to continue to be a strong record because
we are strongly committed to helping developing countries and helping
people who are in need, particularly on the continent of Africa.
Q But not just the United States. Tony Blair said if it was --
if it was another country, particularly a white country, that we would
not see the problems happening like they're happening in Africa. Do
you think that many of the world communities have turned their heads to
Africa maybe in part due to some racism -- some point of racism or some
--
MR. McCLELLAN: You know, April, all I can say is that the United
States is fulfilling its commitments to the continent of Africa. We
encourage others to make sure that they are fulfilling their
commitments, as well. We have an historic debt relief agreement that
has been reached and that will be announced at the G8 summit coming
up. That is an important initiative.
We also have to work to continue to expand trade, because trade
expands opportunity and trade helps lift people up out of poverty and
despair. And that's one of the best way to address some of these
issues when it comes to hunger and poverty and other issues, as well.
Go ahead, Roger.
Q Scott, you mentioned that the highway bill was going to be among the topics discussed with the Senate Republican leaders this afternoon.
MR. McCLELLAN: I expect it will. That lunch is going on right
now.
Q The Senate has offered a compromise of $290 billion on the
six-year highway bill. And Senator Inhofe says that the White House
can accept that. Can you verify that?
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry, a compromise of?
Q Two hundred ninety billion dollars. That would be up from the
President's $284 billion, which he --
MR. McCLELLAN: That's what we've continued to emphasize. That's
what was agreed to. We believe it's important to move forward on a
responsible highway bill that meets our transportation needs and that
keeps us on track to cut the deficit in half by 2009. We've continued
to reach out and work with members of Congress so that we can move
forward on this legislation. It's an important piece of legislation.
We want to get it done and get it passed. And our commitment continues
to be to the level of $284 billion. And that's, by the way, a 35
percent increase over the previous legislation that was passed when it
came to --
Q Inhofe made the point, though, that the White House could
accept $290 billion --
MR. McCLELLAN: I haven't seen what he said, but we continue to
emphasize the importance of sticking to the agreement.
Q Scott, recent terror attacks in Israel, especially in the last 48 hours, have proven the so-called cease-fire agreed to in February has failed. And my question is, hasn't the President cut the feet out from under the Israelis with his insistence on the 1949 armistice line
as the starting point for negotiations with the Palestinians, who have
proven that they cannot control terrorism?
MR. McCLELLAN: Les, we have to focus on what is before us right
now. What is before us right now is the historic Gaza disengagement
plan that Prime Minister Sharon outlined. The parties are meeting
today, or they have been meeting today. I haven't heard an update on
the discussions that they had. But there are some important agreements
in principle for moving forward to make sure that the disengagement
plan is successful. This is a process that will be done in steps, and
the important step to focus on right now is the disengagement plan.
This is an historic opportunity to get moving again on the road map.
But we need to focus on making sure we get it right with the
disengagement plan. And that's why Secretary Rice has been in the
region visiting with the parties. That's why we're pleased that the
parties have been meeting today.
In terms of security issues, we have continued to say that the
Palestinian Authority needs to do more to address these security
concerns, and to go after people who seek to undermine the goal of a
two-state vision that the President outlined.
Q Did the President believe it was wrong for House International
Relations Chairman Henry Hyde to tell the House, "When it comes to
sanctions against the United Nations for failing to reform, if you
leave it to the State Department, you're plowing in the sea."
MR. McCLELLAN: We all share the goal of reforming the United
Nations. That is something we share with --
Q Was Hyde wrong?
MR. McCLELLAN: -- Chairman Hyde.
Q You share with it, oh, good.
MR. McCLELLAN: Reform at the United Nations, Les. You know
exactly what I'm referring to, so let's not try to put words in my
mouth. But we all --
Q No, no. I would never try to do that.
MR. McCLELLAN: We all want to see comprehensive reform at the
United Nations to make it more transparent, more accountable. The
American people want to see reform at the United Nations to make sure
that it is an effective organization that is getting things done, that
is advancing freedom and peace and democracy around the world.
Q Hyde said, depend on the State Department is like "plowing the
sea." What do you think of that?
MR. McCLELLAN: Les, you need to let me finish. I'm talking about
the importance of reform, and Secretary Rice and the people at the
State Department are committed to moving forward on comprehensive
reform. They held a briefing just last week and they outlined our
proposals for reform. And they talked about the importance of
management and budget reform; they talked about the importance of
establishing a democracy fund. And there are a number of other reforms
that they outlined, as well.
Go ahead.
Q Scott, the protestors outside the gate this morning during the
Vietnamese meetings were saying, and the message was that the President should link any concessions to the Vietnamese government on trade and other things --
MR. McCLELLAN: Should what?
Q Should link the concessions, any concessions, to progress on
human rights and religious freedom. Did the President hear anything
today with --
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm not sure specifically what you're referring to,
but as I said, the President and the Prime Minister had a good
discussion about the importance of moving forward on human rights and
moving forward on religious freedom.
Vietnam has taken some steps. We welcome those steps. There is
more to do. And as the President made clear, that it's important to
strengthening our relationships -- relationship with Vietnam, as well.
And he emphasized that in the meeting, that as you continue to move
forward, it will only help us have a stronger relationship.
Q Were any concessions made at all?
MR. McCLELLAN: I don't know what you're referring to, in terms of
concessions.
Q The World Trade Organization or any --
MR. McCLELLAN: The President expressed our strong support for
Vietnam moving forward on accession to the WTO. There are obligations
that have to be met to join the World Trade Organization.
Go ahead.
Q Scott, given the situation in the Senate over John Bolton, it's deadlocked or stalemated, however you want to describe it, it seems like given the President's strong and repeated commitment to doing U.N. reform, how is he weighing this balance between sticking with one individual versus getting reforms done at the U.N.? As we all know, graveyards are filled with indispensable men and women.
MR. McCLELLAN: And, Ed, as I said, we need to call this like it
is. This is a minority of Senate Democratic leaders blocking this
nomination and preventing this nominee from getting about the important
work of reform at the United Nations. It is critical that he get an up
or down vote so that he can get to the United Nations and begin that
important work. It's the Senate Democrats who are blocking this.
Q Is he the only person who can do that job? And is he worth
waiting endlessly --
MR. McCLELLAN: You heard the President talk before -- well, I
don't think that's the case, Ed. I think that's a very general --
Q It hasn't gone anywhere. His nomination --
MR. McCLELLAN: I think that's a very broad characterization you
made, and other things have been worked out in the past.
Go ahead.
Q With oil at $60 a barrel, has the White House or the Council
on Economic Advisers, have any of you, the President, really figured
out what that's going to do to the airline industry, to the trucking
industry, and what the impact that's going to be?
MR. McCLELLAN: We're actually most concerned about the impact it
has on families and small businesses. This is a problem that we've
continued to run into year after year because Congress has failed to
address the root causes of higher energy prices. Congress needs to
move forward on the President's energy plan and get it passed. He outlined this four years ago, and four years is long enough. The Senate is moving forward this week, and it looks like they're going to
pass legislation and we hope that they will then get together with the
house and work out their differences quickly so that that legislation
will get to his desk by the August recess.
Q Scott, how about the here and now, in the economy right now,
the next six months?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, there's always issues that we're looking at.
The President has just talked about it on a number of occasions. He's
talked about how our economy is growing strong. He talked about it
today. We've seen 3.5 million jobs created over the last two years.
The unemployment rate is down to 5.1 percent, more Americans working
than ever before, home ownership at all-time highs. But we need to
continue to build upon that progress to ensure that our economy
continues to grow and that it continues to create jobs.
There are some concerns that the American people have. They're
concerned about high energy prices, they're concerned about high gas
prices, they're concerned about the changing economy that we live in,
in the 21st century. And that's why the President is continuing to
urge Congress to move forward and having discussions, in fact, right
this second with members of Congress about moving forward on additional
pro-growth policies. It's because of the pro-growth policies that we
have implemented that the economy is growing as strong as it is today.
Q Scott, we've got breaking news up here. We've got a headline
up here to ask you about, seriously.
MR. McCLELLAN: I'll come to you. Go ahead, Ken.
Q The President this morning mentioned a landmark agreement
signed with Vietnam about religious freedoms. Is that the same thing
as the statement you put out, or is there some other document that's
being called --
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, this was back -- and what he was referring to
was what was agreed to on May 5th. And that's when we kind of
concluded that agreement, and it's spelled out.
Q Let's let the breaking news out.
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, okay.
Q The Senate Majority Leader is saying that he won't schedule
another Bolton vote because that's been exhausted. And he says at this juncture we have to go back to the President and see what decision he's going to make.
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, like I said, we'll continue to work with the
Senate leadership. I haven't seen his comments. I'll be glad to look
at what he said.
Q Are you evaluating his comments?
Q -- he's not going to schedule another vote.
MR. McCLELLAN: And I appreciate that, and I don't comment on
breaking news from the podium when I haven't had a chance to look at it
myself.
Go ahead.
Q Scott, with the assassination of another high profile leader
in Beirut this morning, the former Secretary General of the Communist
Party, do you feel that chaos might return to Lebanon again and --
MR. McCLELLAN: Do I -- I'm sorry?
Q Do you feel that chaos might return to Lebanon again?
Q Chaos.
Q Chaos.
MR. McCLELLAN: Okay.
Q Do you think that you still blame the Syrians for anything
that's happening in Lebanon --
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry on Syria, do I what?
Q Do you still believe that Syria is playing a role from behind
the scenes for anything that's happening --
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, we are still concerned about Syria's presence
inside Lebanon. It's a very real concern. I think the international
community is concerned about it.
In terms of the assassination of Mr. Hawi, we strongly condemn the
assassination. This is the third such heinous act in the last three
months. You had former Prime Minister Hariri and the journalist,
Kassir, who were assassinated, as well. These are not random
killings. These are targeted assassinations of political figures. It
is clearly an attempt to intimidate the people of Lebanon and to
undermine progress toward a free and democratic future. There needs to
be a full investigation into the assassination. People who are
responsible must be brought to justice for this, as well. Syria's long
and continued presence inside Lebanon has created an environment of
intimidation and political repression. Syria needs to fully comply
with U.N. Security Council Resolution 1559. That means getting all
their intelligence operatives out of Lebanon.
The international community is not going to look the other way.
The international community expects this to end. And Syria needs to
comply with its obligations.
Go ahead, Goyal.
Q Scott, I appreciate the President's fight against terrorism
and also standing for human rights and democracy and freedom around the
globe. But last week he sent a message to Aung San Su Kyi, democratic
leader in Burma, on her 60th birthday, but she's still under house
arrest and -- and in jail, and the Burmese military is still pressing
the people in Burma and also the democratically elected government in
exile? So where do you stand as far as Burma? Why you are not really focusing on the freedom and democracy there?
MR. McCLELLAN: Actually, we are. And you pointed to the statement
that the President put out just last week marking her 60th birthday.
We continue to stand in solidarity with Aung San Su Kyi and call for
her immediate release. That is something we have expressed concerns
about for some time now. And we want to see action taken.
Go ahead. I need to keep going. Go ahead.
Q Scott, last week the drug czar said that Mexico is a model to
fight terrorism -- I mean narco-traffickers. But Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at the same time expressed a big concern about the narc violence in the border between Mexico and the U.S. My question to you is, what's the President considering to do about it, to stop that violence that apparently, and according to the DEA, it's coming to the U.S. Now there are some members of the Mexican cartels who were in Dallas, Texas, according to the DEA, and they say they need more money and the White House is giving more money, more budget to fight on terrorism than on narcotics.
MR. McCLELLAN: I know the President is concerned about the
violence that has occurred recently along the border, particularly in
the Nuevo Laredo area there along the Texas-Mexico border. And we have
had discussions and consultations with the government of Mexico. They
have been sending in federal law enforcement authorities to address our
concerns and to stop the violence from happening. It is a real
concern, and drug trafficking is a real concern that we've worked with
Mexico to address, as well. I don't -- I think the State Department
provided an update on it last week. I don't have any additional
information at this point.
Q Thank you.
MR. McCLELLAN: Thank you all.
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