03 October 2001
Transcript: Bush Says Rumsfeld on Information Sharing Mission Overseas
(Predicts U.S. economy will rebound from effect of terrorist attacks)
(2640)
President Bush said October 3 that Secretary of Defense Donald
Rumsfeld is currently on a trip to the Middle East and Central Asia to
share information with the leaders of a group of nations there, and to
discuss with them the determination of the United States to battle
terrorism.
Before departing late October 2, Rumsfeld said he was going to Saudi
Arabia, Oman, Egypt, and Uzbekistan.
Bush said the United States has "put together a broad coalition of
nations that are interested in ... joining us to battle terrorism. And
Secretary Rumsfeld went over to visit with the leaders of a group of
nations to share with them information, to discuss the determination
of our nation."
"People need to be able to look us in the eye and know that when we
say that we're in this for the long run, that we're going to find ...
terrorists and bring them to justice, we mean it.... It's hard for
people around the world to understand the resolve of America. They may
hear my speech occasionally, but they need to look ... in the eyes of
members of my administration ... and hear them say that not only is
this President resolved, but America is resolved to rout out
terrorism, to make sure that legitimate governments can survive as we
head into the 21st century, and to make a strong stand for freedom.
"And Secretary Rumsfeld is going to do a fine job of delivering that
message, because he knows exactly how I feel about the mission we have
ahead of us," Bush said.
Bush spoke to reporters in New York City following a meeting there
with executives of some of the nation's top companies to discuss the
economic impact of the September 11 terrorist attacks on New York and
Washington. The meeting was held in a building adjacent to the New
York Stock Exchange and close to the scene of the attack on the World
Trade Center.
It was Bush's second visit to New York since the attack. He said he
was saddened to once again see the site where the World Trade Center
had been, but said "through my tears, I do see a much better future
for the country."
Bush assured the business leaders that the American economy will
rebound and grow. "The underpinnings are there for economic recovery,"
he said.
He called for a new round of tax cuts -- for individuals, to boost
consumer confidence, and for businesses, to encourage investment --
plus aid to people who lost their jobs because of the terrorist
attacks.
And he said that Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill was relaying to
Congress the President's call for a stimulus of between $60 billion
and $75 billion.
Following is the White House transcript of the President's remarks:
(begin transcript)
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
October 3, 2001
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT IN PHOTO OPPORTUNITY WITH BUSINESS LEADERS
Freedom Hall New York, New York
THE PRESIDENT: It's an honor to be back in New York City. I want to
thank the Mayor and the Governor for welcoming us back. I'm pleased
that Secretary Don Evans, and Larry Lindsey from the White House
staff, are traveling with me, and I want to thank the business leaders
from not only New York, but others who have come from around the
country to discuss the state of the nation.
And we've had a very frank discussion about the state of our economy.
I think there's no question we all agree that the events of September
11th shocked our economy, just like it shocked the conscience of our
nation. But like those terrorists, they can't affect our soul, they
can't affect the greatness of America. We all believe that the
underpinnings are there for economic recovery.
And we all must do our part. And the federal government has a role to
play. Today Secretary Paul O'Neill testified at Congress, saying that
the administration believes that we ought to have $60 billion to $75
billion more of stimulus to encourage consumer confidence, to enhance
business investment, as well as to take care of displaced workers.
I have shared that with the business leaders here. They understand
that there is a role for the federal government, a strong and active
role. And I assured them it's a role that we intend to play.
I know there are people hurting in America; there are people who have
lost their jobs. But as I assured these leaders, that our government
will do everything we can to get our economy growing, to make it as
strong as possible. I am saddened by the sight of the World Trade
Center, again, once again. But through my tears I do see a much better
future for the country.
This is a great nation. It's an entrepreneurial nation; it's a nation
that has got such generous and kind people -- the leadership, the
business leadership here has contributed $150 million to the funds,
the variety of funds here in the New York City area, to help people,
the victims. It speaks volumes about what America is about.
And I want to thank everybody for coming. I'm now going to ask Ken
Chenault to say a few words.
-- # # # #
THE PRESIDENT: I'd be glad to take a few questions.
Q: What form might this stimulus take? Are we looking at tax cuts for
individuals, corporations?
THE PRESIDENT: You bet. I know we need to provide more tax relief to
individuals to boost consumer confidence. We've just finished passing
out $40 billion of rebate checks; they were completed by October 1st
of this year. There is going to be tax relief started next year as a
part of the package that the Congress and I agreed to.
We believe there ought to be more, to make sure that the consumer has
got money to spend, money to spend in the short-term. Secondly, there
needs to be business relief, as well, to encourage investment. And,
finally, there needs to be a displaced worker package. We've got to
recognize that as a result of September 11th, folks have been laid
off, and we need to make sure they're able to survive until this
economy gets going again.
And I've got to tell you, I had a great conversation with the
leadership of the Congress yesterday. We're coming together on a plan
that I believe needs to get passed as quickly as possible.
Q: Mr. President, is this going to eat up the rest of the surplus for
the year, and does it matter?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, as I said in Chicago during the campaign, when
asked about should the government ever deficit spend, I said only
under these circumstances should government deficit spend: if there is
a national emergency, if there is a recession, or if there's a war.
And, you know, we've now got a reason to do what it takes to not only
provide security at home, to do what it takes to win the war on
terrorism, but we've also got to do what it takes to make sure this
economy gets growing, so people can find work.
And we've got the basis for growth. We're an entrepreneurial nation.
There's a lot of small business growth in America. By and large, the
banking system is very solid; the energy prices are reasonable. And
now we've just got to be aggressive and make sure we do what we need
to do at the federal level to provide a kick-start to give people
reasons to be confident. And we will do that.
This isn't a Republican idea or Democrat idea, it's an American idea.
And it's the right time for us to come together to get it done.
Yes, ma'am.
Q: Mr. President, should the country brace itself for a recession? I
mean, one of your advisors said yesterday that he can forecast it
being likely that two negative quarters of growth are --
THE PRESIDENT: We'll leave all that talk up to the statisticians.
You're asking me about statistics, and we've got people who count
numbers there in Washington, D.C., and that's fine.
Here's my attitude: one person laid off is one person too many. And,
therefore, we've got to do what it takes to make sure that that person
who got laid off is able to find work. I'm not going to dwell on the
past, I'm looking forward. And I believe we've got a fantastic
opportunity to invigorate this economy and to assure the business
leaders around America that the government is playing a very active
role and that we will take the steps necessary to provide growth and
stimulus.
And that's why I believe we need additional stimulus beyond some of
the spending that we've already put in place, to the tune of about $60
billion to $75 billion. We'll let the accountants come up -- they call
it what they want; there's no question that the economy has been
affected by September 11th.
Q: -- signed off on that $60 billion to $75 billion --
THE PRESIDENT: No, they have not, yet. But they do understand we need
to have a range that as you go into a debate about, or discussions
about how to stimulate the economy, first and foremost, it's important
to come up with a total figure so that we don't undershoot or
overshoot the mark. And they do recognize that some of the actions
that we've all taken together, including the $40 billion supplemental
plus the $15 billion for the airline, will have a positive effect on
economic growth, and I do believe they recognize there needs to be
more. And so one of the things that I'm doing is providing the
leadership necessary to try to set the parameters on what the
definition of more is.
Again, I want to repeat: We've just finished with $40 billion of
rebate from the tax package we agreed upon earlier in the year, plus
we'll have about $70 billion in the rate reductions starting next
year. And so, what we're looking at is how to bridge into next year.
Q: Sir, are you confident that the size of the package you're talking
about will do the stimulating you need at this end, without putting
pressure on interest rates --
THE PRESIDENT: That's a very good question. I finally got one -- no --
anyway -- (laughter.) I believe -- I think you ought to ask the -- I
wish you could have heard the discussion we had, let me put it to you
that way, where I believe people around this table, for example,
believe it's important to be aggressive on the front end, that the
risk-reward ratio is beneficial to be more aggressive on the front
end. And obviously, we agree with that; that's why we've proposed up
to $60 billion to $75 billion. But we're mindful of the effect on
long-term interest rates, and we think that number is the right
number.
Q: Mr. President, can you tell us anything specific about these
discussions with these men and women, specifically about did you speak
about corporate relief?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, we did. I can be very specific, just like I have
been. They do believe we need to stimulate the economy through
boosting consumer confidence with some kind of money in the hands of
consumers. And there's a variety of ways to -- excuse me? I'm sorry --
there's a variety of ways to do that. There's rebates, there's
acceleration of the tax cuts, are the two most effective ways to do
that. And we discussed both of those.
Secondly, we discussed a variety of options for corporate relief. One,
we talked about ways to encourage investment through expensing of
depreciation. Some people thought we ought to look at one-time ITCs,
investment tax credits. People talked about the idea of corporate tax
relief. And so we did have specific discussions about ways to make
sure that our economy continues to grow.
And I am most grateful for the input that we have been given here. It
has been incredibly helpful. The thing I come away with is that these
are men and women dedicated to America, first and foremost. They're
dedicated to the workers that work for their company; they're
dedicated to providing the security for their workers so they can go
to work feeling safely. And they love their country, and they're going
to do what it takes to join all of us together to recover from this
awful incident of September 11th.
You only get one question a day.
Q: -- ask your average American to do besides spend, to help?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think the average American must not be afraid
to travel. We opened Reagan Airport yesterday for a reason -- we think
it's safe, and that people ought to feel comfortable about traveling
around our country. They ought to take their kids on vacations. They
ought to go to ball games. The Mayor wants them to come to the Yankee
games, of course. (Laughter.)
MAYOR GIULIANI: The World Series.
THE PRESIDENT: The World Series, yes. (Laughter.) No question he's an
incurable optimist. (Laughter.) But people ought to -- listen, we
ought to be aware in America -- we are aware; how can you not be aware
that we've entered into a new era. The imagery is vivid in people's
minds. But nevertheless, Americans must know that their government is
doing everything we can to track down every rumor, every hint, every
possible evildoer. And, therefore, Americans ought to go about their
business. And they are beginning to do so.
The load factors were up on the airlines, which means more people will
be going to hotels and restaurants. I fulfilled my pledge, my promise
last night to take the Mayor of Washington, D.C. for dinner. I did --
Morton's Steak House. We had a nice slice of beef -- plus I paid.
(Laughter.)
Q: Mr. President, why did you send Secretary Rumsfeld --
THE PRESIDENT: Pardon me, John?
Q: Why did you send him and what is he supposed to do?
THE PRESIDENT: John, he's visiting with our friends. As you know,
we've put together a broad coalition of nations that are interested in
battling, joining us to battle terrorism. And Secretary Rumsfeld went
over to visit with the leaders of a group of nations to share with
them information, to discuss the determination of our nation.
People need to be able to look us in the eye and know that when we say
that we're in this for the long run, that we're going to find
terrorism -- terrorists and bring them to justice, we mean it. That
this is a nation -- see, it's hard for people around the world to
understand the resolve of America. They may hear my speech
occasionally, but they need to look at the eyes -- in the eyes of
members of my administration, because -- and hear them say that not
only is this President resolved, but America is resolved to rout out
terrorism, to make sure that legitimate governments can survive as we
head into the 21st century, and to make a strong stand for freedom.
And Secretary Rumsfeld is going to do a fine job of delivering that
message, because he knows exactly how I feel about the mission we have
ahead of us.
Thank you all for coming.
11:32 A.M. EDT
(end White House transcript)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
