The White House Briefing Room
December 17, 1998
PRESS BRIEFING BY JOE LOCKHART
2:10 P.M. EST
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
______________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release December 17, 1998
PRESS BRIEFING BY
JOE LOCKHART
The Briefing Room
2:10 P.M. EST
MR. LOCKHART: Let me start first with a rundown of what
the President has been up to today, some of it I think you probably
already know. But as I told you this morning, the President started
his day early with a briefing from Sandy Berger, by telephone about
7:a.m., giving him and update on the latest in this military
operation. The President came over to the Oval Office at about 10:00
a.m. There he was briefed at about 10:30 a.m. by General Shelton,
Secretary Cohen and his national security team, as you all had a
chance to speak to him for a few moments.
Since then, the President has been on the phone. He's
made a series of calls to foreign leaders -- he has spoken to Prime
Minister Netanyahu, President Mubarak, King Hussein, and President
Chirac, in a series of calls that were constructive and productive on
the ongoing operations. And the President just completed a series of
calls to the congressional leadership as part of his ongoing
consultations. He spoke to each of the five leaders of Congress.
Q How did they go? How did the conversation with
Senator Lott, for example --
MR. LOCKHART: You'll have to talk to Senator Lott about
his reactions to that. The President wanted to take the chance to
keep the leaders of Congress up to date on the ongoing operation.
Q He spoke with Dick Armey, as well?
MR. LOCKHART: No, I don't believe he did.
Q Give us the list, Joe.
MR. LOCKHART: I think he spoke to Mr. Gingrich, Mr.
Livingston, Mr. Lott, Mr. Daschle and Mr. Gephardt. Does that sound
right? Yes.
Q But was he pleased with what he heard from the
leadership?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, I think he was doing more of
updating on what's going on, and I don't know anything beyond what
their reactions are.
Q Did the President solicit the support of members of
Congress, or does he think that's important at a time when the United
States is engaged in military action?
MR. LOCKHART: I think the President believes it's
important to keep members of Congress, especially the leadership, up
to date and consulted. He believes it's important -- that it is
important for both the public and Congress to support an ongoing
operation like this.
Q What messages did he hear from the foreign leaders,
Joe?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, I'm going to leave it to those
leaders to articulate their views rather than do it from here.
Q We can't get to them. What was the general --
Q You just said that he thinks it's important for
them to support this, but does he feel satisfied that they are?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, I think, as you heard the President
say this morning, that there has been bipartisan support for this
effort, particularly when you look at the members of the House and
Senate who take the lead on international affairs and national
security issues. If you look at the Senate, we've seen positive
statements from Senators Helms, Senator Hagel, Senator Lugar, Senator
McCain, Senator Warner. So the President is gratified that there has
been this support, particularly from those leaders.
Q But is it enough when you have the Senate Majority
Leader not supporting?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, I think the President makes his
decision based on what he thinks is in the best interest of national
security and he believes he's gotten strong bipartisan support,
particularly from the leaders who are most influential in the areas
of national security.
Q What is the report in today's Roll Call that said
that DeLay's gut reaction was to attack Clinton, but he thought that
criticism coming from the House might damage the impeachment efforts
and so he sent word to Lott suggesting that the Senate GOP was better
positioned to criticize. What do you make of that?
MR. LOCKHART: I've seen that report and I just can't
believe a member of Congress would take such a cynical view.
Q Joe, what was his reaction to Lott's comments?
MR. LOCKHART: His -- to Lott's comments? I think the
President understands that there are going to be some members of
Congress who take a different view than he does. But he has to act
in what he believes is the national security interest of this
country, and that's what he's done. And I think he articulated quite
clearly, in both his speech last night and in addressing reporters
today -- and the American public -- of the rationale for what the
threat is and why we needed to act.
Q Joe, did the President talk to Lott about
impeachment? And should the House go ahead with an impeachment vote
while the U.S. military is engaged in action?
MR. LOCKHART: I don't know if the subject of
impeachment came up. As far as whether the vote should go ahead
tomorrow, that is clearly an issue for Congress to decide. The
President makes decisions based on what he thinks are in the best
interests of this country, and the Congress makes decisions on what
they think is in the best interests of this country.
Q But Joe, will the President ask Congress to wait?
Is that --
MR. LOCKHART: No.
Q -- that's not within his prerogatives or purviews?
MR. LOCKHART: No, he believes it is a decision the
Congress should make.
Q But, Joe, he has also said impeachment is not in
the best interests of this country.
MR. LOCKHART: That is correct.
Q Does he think it has no impact at all on his
conduct?
MR. LOCKHART: The President thinks Congress is in the
best position to decide when Congress will take any such action.
Q There were reports that Cohen and Shelton, in their
House meeting, that ultimately they said, look, this hurts morale.
If he agrees with the recommendation of his military advisors, then
it would be his responsibility, right, to make this case?
MR. LOCKHART: I think the persuasive argument for the
President is that this is a decision for Congress to make.
Q But Joe, aren't you a little bit troubled that they
would go ahead with this while a military operation is going on?
MR. LOCKHART: Listen, I think those questions are
better put to the leaders in Congress. Again, the President makes
his decisions based on what he believes the national interests of
this country are, and Congress is so placed to do the same, for the
decisions that are within their purview.
Q Joe, has the President tried to call President
Yeltsin, or does he plan to?
MR. LOCKHART: Not that I'm aware of.
Q Has the President rescheduled the meeting with
Congressman Shays?
MR. LOCKHART: Not that I'm aware of. We have been in
-- I know there's been some consultation with his office but, as far
as I know, it has not been rescheduled yet.
Q Has he called any other congressmen, the President?
MR. LOCKHART: Not that I'm aware of.
Q Why isn't he going to call Yeltsin, Joe?
MR. LOCKHART: Pardon?
Q Why isn't he going to call Yeltsin?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, I know that the Secretary of State
had a conversation yesterday with her counterpart. They exchanged
views on this subject, and if it becomes appropriate for the
President or constructive to make that call, we'll let you know.
Q Do you have any indication at all that the whole
operation, the Desert Fox operation has had any impact whatsoever on
the pending impeachment vote?
MR. LOCKHART: I have no indication of any impact. I
would suggest that there's 435 members who are directly involved
in that, you should ask them.
Q -- reports that Boris Yeltsin has asked his
military to prepare for Iraq. Do we have any idea what his
intentions are?
MR. LOCKHART: Say again please.
Q There have been reports that Boris Yeltsin has
ordered his military to prepare for Iraq. Do we have any idea what
his intentions are?
MR. LOCKHART: I haven't seen any information that
supports any reporting like that.
Q I understand you wanting to leave the
characterization of the foreign leaders comments to them, but would
you describe for us what the President's message was to Mubarak,
Chirac and the rest?
MR. LOCKHART: I think the President made the case that
it was Saddam Hussein that precipitated this action, that in his
efforts to frustrate the will of the international community, more
particularly frustrate the work of UNSCOM, that he led us to an
unacceptable situation where we had to act and strike militarily.
Q Joe, you said this morning that the outreach on
impeachment was pretty much at an end. Why is that?
MR. LOCKHART: I think, as has been reported, there was
a temporary halt in any sort of outreach. I think if we, over the
last 24 hours, had been aggressively reaching out on impeachment, we
certainly would have been criticized for trying to take advantage of
this pause and delay in the impeachment vote. So I think we felt it
was appropriate to not do that. Except in response to inquiries that
might come in to us.
Q Is the White House giving up on impeachment, Joe?
Do you believe that you've lost the vote already?
MR. LOCKHART: We don't -- the vote as has been
described for us will take place on Saturday. We believe we've made
a strong case. We believe that people should be reminded of that
case, of the case that over 900 constitutional scholars said this
didn't reach the standard for impeachment; that a bipartisan panel of
prosecutors came in and said there was no case here; that a panel
that the Republicans put together on perjury, when they finished
their testimony, all stood up and said the President shouldn't be
impeached. So we think that's an important and compelling case.
And ultimately, we think that members, when they go into
the House of Representatives and cast one of the most important votes
in their lives -- if they move forward based on the facts, the
Constitution and the law, we don't believe the President will be
impeached. If they can put politics aside, that may happen. If they
can't, then we may have another result.
Q Joe, you've been told by Congress that the debate
will begin tomorrow, and the vote is likely on Saturday?
MR. LOCKHART: I became aware of that by watching
television.
Q You've gotten no official notification, then?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, people who get official word here
may have, but I have no reason to dispute what I've seen on
television.
Q Joe, you just talked about a temporary halt over
the last 24 hours. Will that continue? Has the President himself
instructed his staff and supporters not to do any further outreach
until the end?
MR. LOCKHART: I think now -- I can't articulate any
particular activity, but now that they've scheduled the vote, there
certainly could be no perception of trying to take advantage of a
delay. And if there's anything that the President does, or any
particular effort or outreach that he does, I'll make you aware of
it. I'm not aware of it now.
Q But are staff and supporters and Cabinet members,
et cetera, now going to resume those efforts over the next 24 hours?
MR. LOCKHART: I would expect, over the next 24 hours,
that we will restart and continue some outreach.
Q Joe, has the President been surprised that people
on Capitol Hill and world capitals would make the explicit suggestion
that the timing of this raid was linked to the impeachment inquiry?
MR. LOCKHART: I think given -- as the President told
you today -- given the facts as they are, given the fact that he
makes decisions based on what's in the national security interest,
that he believes that you can have a debate on the policy, but not a
real debate on the timing.
Q Joe, if the President is -- if the House does vote
to impeach the President, does he feel that he, then, continues with
the same power, authority and influence that he had before? Does it
make any difference in how he approaches his job and how he conducts
himself?
MR. LOCKHART: No, I don't think so. I think
particularly if that were to happen along party lines, I think the
public and the world will see this as a partisan effort to try to
remove the President based on allegations that really had nothing to
do with what the Constitution has talked about as an impeachable
offense, and based on sort of vague, unspecific ideas that even
members of Congress who came out in the last few days with a decision
couldn't adequately articulate the reasons behind their vote.
Q My question is about his behavior. Does he feel
that he can govern as effectively and completely, in exactly the same
way, if he stands as an impeached President, as he did before that?
MR. LOCKHART: Yes, he does.
Q Joe, a couple of national polls indicate that a
majority of the people think the President should resign if he's
impeached to spare the country a trial.
MR. LOCKHART: We did this yesterday, Scott.
Q If I could just finish that question. Do those
polls influence the President's thinking on whether he should resign?
MR. LOCKHART: I think the President believes, and I
think you have seen a demonstration of it, that he can act in what he
believes is the best interest of this country and in the best
interest of our national security and vital interests.
Q Since yesterday those polls -- you mentioned
yesterday that there are different wordings to these questions, but
they still show a sizeable number -- many of the polls show
majorities of people saying the best way to get this whole matter
over with if he's impeached is for the President to resign. And up
until now you've said the most important thing is that the American
public doesn't want him to be impeached.
MR. LOCKHART: That's right, and that still stands.
Q Well, if the American public wants him to resign,
would he take that into consideration?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, I think you've heard from the
President on the subject several times.
Q Why is it legitimate to say that he shouldn't be
impeached because the American public doesn't want him to be, but if
they want him to resign they're opinions don't matter?
MR. LOCKHART: I haven't -- except for one thing I saw
in the newspaper, I haven't seen any evidence that the American
public wants the President to resign.
Q What about your own poll?
MR. LOCKHART: I'm not going to talk about our polling.
Q Why does he think it's the best interest not to
resign?
MR. LOCKHART: I think the President believes, and I
think the country believes, that we have accomplished an enormous
amount in the last six years under this stewardship. We have the
strongest economy in three decades, with record low unemployment,
record low interest rates, record job creation and growth. We have
falling crime. We have people moving off the welfare rolls and into
work. This has been a truly remarkable six years under the
stewardship of this President. But we still have a lot more to do.
The President has articulated challenges from Social
Security to education to child care, and he doesn't believe that he
should be side-tracked by a group of Republicans who happen to be in
the majority now in Congress who seem to be pursuing a course based
not so much on the national interest of this country, but on their
own partisan advantage.
Q Joe, how can he advance that agenda if he faces a
Senate trial that could go on for months and months?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, we work hard here every day and he
is going to continue to work hard to advance his agenda.
Q Houghton was here yesterday and met with the
President. He is pushing a proposal, censure proposal, where the
President would not make his 1999 State of the Union address and
would refrain from any Democratic fundraising in the future. Does
that kind of proposal meet the criteria the White House has set
forth?
MR. LOCKHART: Again, I'm not going to get into a
negotiating position here.
Q You told us the Democratic proposal met his
criteria
Q But in the past you've said things that were --
MR. LOCKHART: Yes, and I've also said things that come
forward with broad support and have a chance of being put on the
floor or put before a committee and voted on. Unless the Republican
leadership has had some change of heart that we don't know of, I
don't know if that's going to be put forth.
I spoke, in the past, Mara, about a vote that was put
before the Judiciary Committee because I thought because it was being
put forward by Democrats and because it was being considered
seriously it was in the interest of the public to discuss the
particulars of that censure motion. And we discussed it.
Q You said that being reasonable and being made in
good faith were the only two criteria -- not if it has a chance of
passing.
MR. LOCKHART: It's a criteria to be considered, but I'm
not going to discuss the details of it.
Q On that point, Houghton said that the President
objected to a couple of things in his proposal, one of which was that
he not give the State of the Union message and the other was that he
not be allowed to fund-raise. You're not disputing Houghton's
account of what the President --
MR. LOCKHART: I wasn't in the meeting so I'm not in a
position to dispute his account.
Q You said put politics aside and yet some of these
moderates who have said that they would vote to impeach the President
are very likely to suffer politically for that. Doesn't that
indicate that maybe this is not being politically driven by the
Republicans?
MR. LOCKHART: I would just dispute that.
Q Joe, President Bush has come out in support of
President Clinton and so has President Carter. Has the President
contacted or talked to either one of them?
MR. LOCKHART: I don't know. I know frequently in times
like this we do reach through the National Security Advisor and staff
to influential members of the foreign policy community, of which I
consider both of those former Presidents to be very
influential. But I'm not aware that the President has spoken to
them.
Q Joe, could you give us a little more detail on the
President's actual mood dealing with both these questions of military
strikes on Iraq and talking to the Hill at a time when the
impeachment issue is approaching?
MR. LOCKHART: It would be an understatement to say that
the President has been tested over the week. I mean, you have left
out an important part of our last week, which is dealing with the
Middle East peace process, and doing what he can to put that effort
back on track. And I think we had enormous success in both the PNC
vote and in our efforts to move the Wye Accord implementation
forward. So I think there has been a lot going on and the President
has been tested. But I think what you can see and what he's
demonstrated is he's up to the challenge.
Q If I could follow up on the question. Is it
testing him to talk to congressional leaders about Iraq with the
impeachment issue hanging over him?
MR. LOCKHART: No, I don't think the President has
trouble separating the vital national security interests of this
country with some of the domestic politics that are going on.
Q Are you concerned what kind of message, if the
President is impeached on Saturday by the House of Representatives,
in the midst of this military operation over Iraq -- are you
concerned what kind of message that would send to Saddam Hussein and
others who are looking at his power right now?
MR. LOCKHART: I think the President has demonstrated
his ability to lead both our country and lead within the
international community. I can't speculate on what kind of messages
-- I think that that's a more legitimate question to put to the
leaders of the Congress.
Q What do you think about the prospect of Israeli
elections putting off -- basically freezing the Wye implementation
for months?
MR. LOCKHART: Obviously, we have spoken at great length
about the importance of moving forward with implementing Wye. We
think it's manifestly in the interest of all parties in the Middle
East that that agreement move forward. As far as elections, I think
that's an internal matter for the government of Israel.
Q But can those accords be implemented while
elections are going on?
MR. LOCKHART: We believe that both sides have every
incentive to move forward. And we continue to urge both sides to
implement what they agreed to at Wye.
Q Joe, you said the President has been tested over
the last few weeks. But can you say that the American public has
been tested as well, over the last few weeks, with this impeachment
process, and now, questions about timing, with the air raid on Iraq?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, I think certainly, anytime the very
dedicated and heroic men and women in uniform put themselves in
harm's way, it's testing both for them and for the country. I think,
separate and apart from that, the impeachment process has also been
testing. The American public, in an overwhelming fashion, views this
as something that's unnecessary, and they view it as something that's
partisan, and they want it stopped.
Q Can they do anything about it?
MR. LOCKHART: Again, here, you're asking me questions
that -- I wish I could bring the leaders of Congress down here to
stand here and answer these questions, because they're all good
questions, and they all should be asked, and they all should be
answered. And they should be answered in a satisfactory way to the
American public. But I can't answer them for them.
Q Joe, a follow-on to that, though. It's gotten to
be more than just a water-cooler issue on the job. I mean, this is
really tearing a lot of communities apart -- Democrats versus
Republicans. I mean, friends are fighting about, you know, if he's
lying, if he's not, and can we believe him about timing. I mean, it
really is testing people.
MR. LOCKHART: Well, again, you've raised a series of
separate issues. But on the question of the debate that's going on
in Congress, it is our ultimate hope that members can put politics
aside and do this based on the facts, the law and the Constitution.
Q Joe, have the President's advisors begun contacting
members of the Senate in any way to try to lay the groundwork for
influencing a trial?
MR. LOCKHART: The people here at the White House talk
to members of the Senate all the time. This is an issue that's on
people's minds, so I'm certain there's been some discussion. But I
can't detail anything in particular.
Q -- back to the heart of the matter. This is the
only member of Congress that the President has sat down with for a
face-to-face meeting, that we know of, that was solely on the
impeachment/censure question, and you don't have any details on that.
Are you being kept in the dark by staff on the current efforts to
figure out what to do next about impeachment?
MR. LOCKHART: No, I don't think I have. But I don't
have any information on that.
Q Did they tell you anything about the only
face-to-face meeting the President has had on this question?
MR. LOCKHART: Jim, I got a readout on the meeting, but
I didn't get any particular information about those specifics that
you've raised.
Q Joe, there's a longstanding tradition in America
against removing a President in time of war. Is this -- or the war
against terrorism -- considered a war?
MR. LOCKHART: Say again, please?
Q The issue of removing a President in time of war
has a longstanding tradition. Is this, or the war against terrorism,
considered a war?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, I certainly think that there are
Americans who are putting their lives at risk every day in this
operation and I don't think it matters what label you put on it.
This is a serious situation designed to address a serious problem.
Q So what about the war against terrorism? Is that a
war?
MR. LOCKHART: I don't know how you define things. It's
certainly a serious situation that this country remains ever-vigilant
against, and it's an increasing problem for this government, and it
takes on an increasing amount of the President's time.
Q Does that mean that the House should not act? The
premises of her question -- you just accepted them. Does that mean
that the House should not act?
MR. LOCKHART: I understand the premise. And my answer
is that the House, and members of Congress, need to make those
decisions. We have a system of government here where there are
separation of powers -- where the President makes decisions based on
what he believes is in the best interests of the country, and
Congress makes decisions based on what they believe is in the best
interest of the country. It's, frankly, immaterial what I think
about that. They need to make those decisions, and they will.
Q Joe, you comment on what Congress does here almost
every day. Why on such an important issue would you --
MR. LOCKHART: Because this is an issue that they need
to decide, that they have to make the calculation that they're
making. That's all I'm going to say.
Q Any reaction of the insistence of the Republicans
today in the resolution that they support the troops, but not the
Commander in Chief?
MR. LOCKHART: That message only echoes the sentiment
that the President expressed this morning, so we appreciate support
for those who serve under the Commander in Chief.
Q Back on Iraq, was the President surprised by how
quickly Lott came out and as strongly as he did with his initial
comments, or in the briefings that had been given by the White House
to Lott -- were there indications, were you all prepared?
MR. LOCKHART: I haven't talked in any detail with the
President about whether he was surprised or not. Senator Lott
expressed his view; it's his view, and if you need elaboration on it,
I'd suggest you talk to him.
Q Joe, does the White House think it's fully
legitimate for a lame duck House to be considering impeachment?
Would he challenge a vote for impeachment somehow through the courts?
MR. LOCKHART: I don't have any specific information on
that. I know some interesting constitutional issues were raised by
Professor Ackerman at one of the hearings, but I haven't heard any
discussion of that since the hearings.
Q Joe, has the President done anything today to try
to buck up the spirits of the staff?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, as I told you yesterday, he spoke
to his senior staff yesterday and delivered a message that it was
important that we remain focused on our jobs. That's what the
American public sent us here to do, that's what they expect and they
won't accept any excuse for being distracted.
Q Hypothetically about the President's ability to
lead in a post-impeachment scenario, does he or anybody in this White
House believe that impeachment can be avoided at this point in the
House, and is the focus of the staff here now completely turned to
the --
MR. LOCKHART: Let me repeat again, that the President,
the people here at the White House believe that, if members walk into
the House of Representatives and are able to put politics aside, and
do this on the facts and the Constitution, and what 900
constitutional scholars urged, and what prosecutors urged and what
Republicans' own witnesses at their hearings urged, then the
President won't be impeached.
Q But is there any chance of that, in your mind?
MR. LOCKHART: I think that, on a vote this important
and this solemn, that, yes, there's always a chance.
Q Joe, does the White House have any information that
Saddam Hussein may have been wounded or killed in the attack?
MR. LOCKHART: I have not heard any information like
that.
Q Is Hussein, himself, a target of the attack?
MR. LOCKHART: I think Secretary Cohen addressed that.
Q Joe, any details on tomorrow's EU-U.S. summit?
What does the administration hope to accomplish?
MR. LOCKHART: Let me take that question, because I
don't have anything prepared on that.
Q Joe, any possibility of the President addressing
the impeachment issue? Making a speech over the next couple of days?
MR. LOCKHART: I'm not aware of the President planning
to make any speeches.
Q How about Mrs. Clinton?
MR. LOCKHART: Same answer.
Q Will there be a press conference tomorrow?
MR. LOCKHART: Press conference tomorrow?
Q After the EU summit?
MR. LOCKHART: No, I don't think so. I think the EU
leader and the -- I believe it's the Prime Minister of Austria is
here -- they may make themselves available in some way.
Q Joe, how does the President feel about the negative
reactions all over the world? For instance, in France, people call
that the "Wag the Dog" syndrome. How does he feel about that?
MR. LOCKHART: I think the President is encouraged by
the positive response he's gotten from governments around the world.
By and large, people have been strongly supportive of the President
and his actions. And I think the President also understands that we
need to continue to make the case and articulate what's at stake
here, what the risk is, what happens when we allow someone like
Saddam Hussein to reconstitute his weapons of mass destruction and
why that is such a serious threat. Because as the President told you
last night, this is someone who's used these weapons -- he's used
them more than once against his enemies and his own people.
Q Do you think you will succeed to get rid of Saddam
Hussein?
MR. LOCKHART: Well, I think certainly the President has
articulated the goal that there be new leadership in Iraq, and that
if the public of Iraq had a voice in this they would certainly want a
new leadership. We can look forward to that, I think, with the Iraq
Liberation Act. We will be working with opposition groups to move
toward that day.
But the real and clear and present danger that faces us
now is Saddam Hussein and his weapons of mass destruction and his
ability to reconstitute those and deliver them. And it is a real
threat to people around the world. And the American government and
military will take the lead in making sure that we contain that
threat.
Q Joe, was there ever a determination of how Iraq
might have gotten an early warning the last time, when we almost
proceeded with this attack? Did the administration ever find out how
Iraq came to know that?
MR. LOCKHART: I'm not aware of any finding on that.
Q The Republican leadership in the House said that
they will reserve their first House bill, HR 1, the President's
Social Security proposal. Is there any chance the President might
have that ready in January or is it going to be --
MR. LOCKHART: I think you can expect to hear from the
President on Social Security between now and the beginning of
Congress, and probably expect to hear from him in the State of the
Union address Social Security. But our view has not changed -- we're
going to do what's in the best interest of getting a long-term
solution to Social Security. We're not going to play a game of who
goes first on this with members of Congress. And we think we,
through the Social Security Conference and the outreach we did before
that, have built a strong base to move forward, working with
Republicans and Democrats on the Hill, to get a long-term solution.
Q Joe, can you rule out at this point any large
public effort by the President to head off impeachment in the next
couple of days, no trip to Capitol Hill, no television address?
MR. LOCKHART: I'm not aware of any plans to do any of
that.
Q Joe, back on Social Security. When they came out
of that meeting a week or so ago, Blair House, there was some talk
about more sessions like that being organized. Are those being --
MR. LOCKHART: Yes, I think under the direction of Gene
Sperling here, there has been ongoing work out of that conference,
working with the 60 or so members who have been -- well, I think it's
48 members who are designated and then 12 White House
representatives. So those discussions have continued and been
ongoing. And I think the Social Security Conference set up a
structure by which the members can all work together with the White
House.
Q No matter what happens you expect Christmas here,
the Clintons celebrate here and go on to Hilton Head?
MR. LOCKHART: Yes, right. I expect them to keep the
schedule that we've announced.
Q Can you give any heads-up on what the budget
meeting is going to be about today? Are they going to be finalizing
anything today, or who is going to be involved?
MR. LOCKHART: I think the meeting is with his economic
team to -- we are now well into the budget process with all of the
various federal agencies and the complete outlook for the budget for
the year. They're going to -- we've gotten to the point where there
is some serious work that needs to be done on this in order to have
the budget ready for early February -- yes, early February.
Q What time is that meeting with the budget?
MR. LOCKHART: At 4:00 p.m.
Q So long as the military action is ongoing in Iraq,
do you expect that the President would have daily visits from his --
would he meet --
MR. LOCKHART: He certainly will be kept up-do-date
throughout today and into this evening by Sandy Berger; to the extent
that it's necessary he'll be in contact with General Shelton and
Secretary Cohen. We'll just have to keep you up-to-date on a
day-to-day basis.
Q And access here, particularly late at night and
early in the morning?
MR. LOCKHART: What did we decide? I think that we
decided that we will keep it open like we did last night.
Q Is he watching any of it on television, Joe?
MR. LOCKHART: You know, I can't -- I don't want to rule
that out. In the couple hours I spent up there this morning he was
mostly in meetings. I can't rule out that he's caught a little bit
of the coverage.
Thank you.
END 3:00 P.M. EST
#32-12/17/98
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