Text 1444, 897 rader
Skriven 2005-09-19 23:33:02 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0509191) for Mon, 2005 Sep 19
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Press Briefing by Scott McClellan
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
September 19, 2005

Press Briefing by Scott McClellan
James S. Brady Press Briefing Room

Press Briefing
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12:40 P.M. EDT

MR. MCCLELLAN: Good afternoon, everyone. The President this morning
participated in his daily hurricane briefing; that was led by Secretary
Chertoff. The President, following that meeting, held a Homeland Security
Council meeting to talk about the priority areas for moving forward on the
recovery and the longer-term rebuilding related to Katrina.

Secretary Chertoff, at the beginning of that meeting, went over several
areas to update the Cabinet on where we stand in terms of the recovery. He
talked about the -- he gave an update on the latest search and rescue
efforts and how more than 48,000 people have been rescued; he gave an
update on the number of people that were evacuated by the federal
government; also gave an update on the number of pets that had been rescued
-- some 8,000. And then he talked about the number of people that had been
treated for medical care -- some 41,000 people -- patients have been --
were treated in the region. The latest state numbers on the total number of
fatalities was at 840 as of this morning, and that was part of the update,
as well.

In terms of life-sustaining food and water and supplies that have been
provided to people, there have been over 180 million pounds of ice that has
been provided; 63 million -- more than 63 million liters of water; nearly
27,000 MREs*; a large number of sheeting rolls and tarps and generators, as
well. Secretary Chertoff also updated on the status of the water systems in
all the affected areas and the affected states and the status of ports and
airfields, as well.

He talked about the debris removal efforts. You heard from the President on
that. The President has been visiting with local officials about the debris
removal issue and listening to their concerns. And that's why the
Department of Homeland Security is moving forward to expedite the debris
removal process. There is still a large amount of debris that is remaining
that needs to be removed, and we are working closely with state and local
authorities to address that priority area, as well.

He also provided an update on the customers without power in the region. I
think that there are some 300,000 still in the New Orleans area without
power. And he talked about the de-watering process in the New Orleans area
-- in New Orleans and the parishes, as well, and how the number of people
and pumps that we have available are adequate and they're continuing to
move forward on that effort.

And then he gave an update on the financial assistance activity provided by
the federal government, as well, the number of people registered and the
number of people that have received financial assistance over the total
time, as well as over the last couple of weeks, and the latest update on
the shelter population numbers, which is now coming down.

And, finally, he talked about the Hurricane Katrina task force. And if
you'll remember, I talked to you all about how there are nine Cabinet-level
working groups that have been formed. They're moving forward on a number of
initiatives. I think there are some 84 initiatives that they're actively
addressing right now. This includes in the area of environmental impact and
clean-up, it also includes health care working group, the economic impact
working group, the energy supply working group. And then, of course, the
Department of Homeland Security is moving forward at the direction of the
President to review the major city emergency plans. And today, the
Department of Homeland Security is going to be conducting some
teleconferences with state and urban area homeland security advisors to
move forward at the direction of the President on that review.

The President also heard from Secretary Rumsfeld about the latest military
efforts in the relief efforts. He heard from Secretary Leavitt about the
efforts to make sure we're getting people back up on their feet and the
progress that's being made to provide them the federal benefits that they
depend upon, such as unemployment insurance and Medicaid and welfare
payments, as well.

And then he heard from Secretary Jackson about the priority area of
housing. We continue to move forward to address the housing needs, both the
short-term and the longer-term needs. Secretary Spellings provided an
update on the assistance being provided to states that are taking in
displaced school students. And Administrator Johnson talked about the
latest health concerns and -- both when it comes to the preliminary
sampling of the water, as well as some of the air sampling in the city, as
well.

And then you heard from the President following that. And that's all I had
to begin with. I just wanted to give you an update on his day.

Q Does the President have the authority to stop the return of residents to
New Orleans? And, if so, does he intend to do that?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, Terry, I don't know if it's an issue of whether or not
the authority that needs to be discussed at this point. Admiral Allen and
the Mayor are having discussions today about how to move forward on our
shared goal of getting people back to New Orleans. It's a question of
timing, as Admiral Allen has pointed out. There are still concerns when it
comes to the potential health hazards. He's been working closely with the
Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for Disease Control. They
have done some preliminary sampling of the water. They are concerned about
the high levels of bacteria in that water. There are also concerns about
making sure that basic services are up and running, such as a 911 system.

In the case of -- we now have a tropical storm headed towards Florida,
Tropical Storm Rita, and that's something we're keeping a close eye on and
preparing for, along with the state. And the projection now, while it's not
necessarily projected to hit that area, we are concerned if it did turn
toward that area what it would mean for a city that right now has levees in
a weakened condition. And you would need to have an evacuation plan in
place to be able to notify people, and that 911 system would be very
important.

So there are a number of issues there that we still have concerns about
when it comes to helping people return safely to the city of New Orleans.
The President has made it very clear he wants to see New Orleans not only
rebound, but thrive and be stronger and better than before. And so we're
committed to working closely with the Mayor. They are working in
partnership and they will have discussions today about how to move forward.

Q So if the President thought that there were safety issues and that the
people couldn't get -- shouldn't go back, would he step in? Does he have
the authority to step in and stop it, and would he do that?

MR. McCLELLAN: Again, you know, that -- I would focus on where things stand
right now. The Admiral and the Mayor are discussing matters. Andy Card has
been in discussion with the Mayor on a couple of occasions, today; the
President has talked about these issues with the Mayor. We're all working
together toward the same shared goal. And that's where it stands --

Q Yes, I understand that. But are you trying to get the Mayor to change his
mind?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I'm not trying to get into speculative matters at this
point because we're all working together. Let's let the meeting take place
and let's let discussions take place. It's not a question of the authority
right now; it's a question of how we work together toward our shared goal.
And that's what we're working to do.

Q From a strictly legal standpoint, though, does --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I mean, you can look up all the legal issues and see
the authority that exits. But for me to raise that level here from the
podium I don't think is helpful right now. We're all working together.

Q Yesterday, former President Clinton had some pretty pointed criticisms of
administration policy on the initial response to the hurricane, as well as
fiscal policy, the amount of debt held by foreign nations. Anything to
those criticisms? What's your opinion here? Was he totally off the mark?

MR. McCLELLAN: I think we've addressed those issues. The President talked
about the initial response and there was a lot of great work done by many
people that were working round-the-clock to save lives. And we can't
discount that. There was tremendous effort by our Coast Guard search and
rescue personnel. There was tremendous effort by state and local first
responders to address some significant challenges in a storm like we have
never seen before. This was one of the worst natural disasters in our
history.

And with that said, the President was not pleased with the results of the
initial response and that's why he is moving forward within the federal
government of a comprehensive review of all Cabinet departments and their
response efforts. That's why we're going to work closely with Congress to
make sure that they conduct a thorough investigation so that we can apply
those lessons to future response efforts. We want to make sure that we are
fully prepared to address natural disasters or disease pandemics that could
break out, or terrorist threats. And that's why it's important to look back
at all those issues.

So the President has talked about that and addressed that matter
previously. And in terms of priorities, I don't know what your question is,
but --

Q Was he disappointed that President Clinton made those comments at this
particular time, particularly given the fact that President Clinton seemed
to be looking ahead to the 2008 election?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, a couple of things. One, we welcome a discussion or a
debate of policies that we have implemented and that we have pursued. No
one can question the results that we have achieved on behalf of the
American people. The policies that this President has pursued are bold ones
and they are ones that are achieving real results for all Americans. The
President, from day one, has been acting to move forward on bold
initiatives to produce real results that are helping all Americans. We are
closing the achievement gap with sweeping education reforms, so that every
child can learn and succeed. We are moving forward on pro-growth economic
policies that are creating jobs. We have more Americans working now than
ever before. We're reaching out to faith-based groups and community
organizations that have proven records of helping people in need. And we're
now helping more people in need.

And we're also moving forward to expand home ownership. Minority home
ownership has reached record levels under this administration. We've worked
to expand community health centers.

So I think it's important to look at the policies, and we're glad to talk
about the policies. And one question you have to come back to is, do we
continue to move forward on failed policies of the past that have left too
many behind, or do we think in new and bold ways to help all Americans. And
this President has thought in new and bold ways and actually acted. And we
are making great progress to do so.

Q So I take it you're not going to talk directly about President Clinton,
even though he was talking very directly about you all?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, if we want to talk about policies, I'm glad to talk
about that. But I think we've made our views clear and the results are
helping all Americans.

Q Can I just follow on that? Can I just quote the former President? He
says, "You can't have an emergency plan that works if it only affects
middle-class people. If you tell people to do something that don't have the
means to do it, you're going to lead the poor out," talking about the
people who lost homes who have no property insurance. He said, "Everything
they own was in their little home. If we really wanted to do it right, we
would have had lots of buses lined up to take them out, and also lots of
empty vans to save the belongings of those with no home or flood
insurance."

Now, you've said the President was unhappy with the effort. Does the
President basically agree with what Bill Clinton is saying?

MR. McCLELLAN: I didn't say "the effort," I said, "the results."

Q "The results."

MR. McCLELLAN: You can't discount all the work that was done by the search
and rescue teams and the Coast Guard and the first responders, the state
and local people that were on the scene trying to save lives. And as the
President said, the storm didn't discriminate, neither did the federal
government response. We were trying to save the lives of all those who had
been affected by this. The Coast Guard search and rescue teams were trying
to save the lives of everybody they could in the city.

Q Well, given the President's unhappiness, does the administration
basically agree that Bill Clinton is right?

MR. McCLELLAN: I think we've expressed our views. He can speak with his own
views. But I think the President has clearly expressed our views.

And in terms of the issue when it comes to the elderly and vulnerable and
the poor, those that didn't necessarily have the means to get out of the
area -- the President has spoken at length about that. He made it very
clear that some of the greatest hardship fell on those individuals -- the
elderly, the vulnerable, and the poor.

And the rebuilding of the region is an opportunity to renew our commitment
to equality and justice for all Americans by building a better and stronger
region. And that's what he's committed to doing. There is a deep history of
injustice that has led to poverty and inequality, and this storm has
brought to light, in a more vivid way, some of that inequality and poverty
that exists in the region. And it's not going to be overcome instantly. But
this President, from day one, has been acting boldly to address these
issues and to achieve results.

Q If he was so bold, why do we have 37 million people living below the
poverty line?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, do you want me to go back and talk about the economy?

Q I mean, if his policies are so great.

MR. McCLELLAN: I'll be glad to go -- more Americans are working than ever
before, Helen. We've --

Q Thirty-seven million below the poverty --

MR. McCLELLAN: -- seen the unemployment rate drop to 4.9 percent because of
the action that this President has taken. We've seen more than 4 million
jobs created since May of 2003.

Now, this storm has had an impact, and it will have a short-term impact on
our national economy. But I think if you look at most -- what most
economists are saying, they continue to see strong and sustained growth as
we move forward. It's going to have an impact in the short-term on the
upcoming quarters that we'll see coming out in terms of growth and job
creation.

But keeping our national economy growing is a key lifeline to the region.
And the President -- remember, when we came into office, the stock market
had declined significantly, we were inheriting a recession, then you had
the attacks of September 11th. So this economy has proven to be very strong
and resilient in the face of significant challenges because of the policies
this President has acted on to implement.

Q Scott, let me ask you about money matters. Tom DeLay was recently quoted
when asked about whether there were any cuts that could be made to help
fund the rebuilding, that about all the fat there was has been trimmed out
of the federal budget. Does the President agree with that?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, there's a number of savings that we have proposed in
our current budget that the Congress has yet to act on. And so that's a
good starting point in terms of going forward to address some of the
offsets that will be needed for the resources that will be dedicated to the
relief and rebuilding efforts related to Katrina. And the President
directed his OMB Director, Josh Bolten, to work with Congress to cut
unnecessary spending to help offset some of the costs associated with the
rebuilding effort.

Q Well, what does the President have to say to members of his own party,
other conservatives, activists, pundits, who criticize him for wanting to
have it all? He wants to have guns and butter, he wants to fund Iraq, he
wants to have tax cuts, and now he wants to put together the largest
reconstruction effort the world has ever seen.

MR. McCLELLAN: I disagree with the characterization, because the President
the other day clearly stated that we've got to make sure that we work with
state and local officials to have a well-planned rebuilding effort. This is
one of the -- this is going to be one of the largest reconstruction efforts
ever.

Q But how can we afford it?

MR. McCLELLAN: And we are going to -- well, first of all --

Q How can we afford it?

MR. McCLELLAN: -- first of all, we are going to meet the needs of the
people in the region. The President was adamant about that. We are going to
do what it takes. We have an obligation, as a nation, to help the people in
the region rebuild their lives and rebuild their communities. We also have
an obligation to move forward on -- in a well thought out way with those
state and local officials. It will be driven by the local vision, but we're
there to support them. And the President made clear that the infrastructure
is going to be costly. But the federal government is going to be there to
pick up a large portion of those costs.

And that's why it's important that we move forward to make sure that
taxpayer money is being spent wisely in the region, and we have --

Q But --

MR. McCLELLAN: -- hang on, hang on -- we have inspector generals' teams in
the region that will work to make sure that that happens. And as we move
forward to address the needs in the region, we also need to look at our
budget and where there's unnecessary spending happening, we need to make
cuts. The President has made that very clear.

Q Where? Where?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, there are savings that we proposed in our budget, like
I said, that Congress has yet to act on. That's a starting point. Other
members are talking about various ideas. We are --

Q You're not coming up with any ideas. Congressman Mike Pense suggested
delaying the prescription drug implementation to '07, that would save $40
billion, and Josh Bolten wouldn't even entertain it. I mean, isn't part of
the problem is that it's kind of a sham to tell the American people that
your federal government will do it all, but yet again, we won't ask for any
sacrifice --

MR. McCLELLAN: I disagree with your characterization, because this
President --

Q Well, where are the cuts?

MR. McCLELLAN: -- from day one has worked to cut non-security discretionary
spending. And he's also worked to address other priorities, like
entitlements, which drive a lot of costs, as well, and to implement
important reforms. We reformed Medicare and put in some cost controls to
start that process of addressing some of those issues.

Q You're conveniently not addressing members of the President's own party
that say that --

MR. McCLELLAN: No, we're --

Q -- this guy spends like a Democrat, and they're -- that he's trying to
create the New Deal again. I mean, what about criticism from your own
party, that it's, hey, big spender, when are you -- how are you going to do
the math?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, look at our budgets, David. You seem to conveniently
ignore the facts. Our budgets have --

Q I looked at the budgets. I'm looking at the deficit. I'm just wondering
what you're going to do about it.

MR. McCLELLAN: -- have put forward significant savings on a number of
programs. Congress has yet to act on those. We encourage Congress to move
forward and act on those. There's tens of billions of dollars of savings in
some of those proposals, and that's a good starting point. But we're going
to work with Congress to offset the cost by focusing on unnecessary
spending.

Now, there are important priorities that we must meet. The number one
obligation this President has is the safety and security of the American
people. And we are going to meet that priority. We are going to continue to
move forward on winning the war on terrorism to prevent something like what
happened on September 11th from ever happening again, and we're going to
move forward on addressing the needs of the people in the region to make
sure that they --

Q And no sacrifice --

MR. McCLELLAN: -- get back up on their feet and that they rebuild their
lives and rebuild the communities. But the President made it clear that we
also have got to find cuts elsewhere in the budget where that spending is
not essential.

Q Following up on John's question about what President Clinton said, you've
said and the President has said this storm did not discriminate. But the
point that President Clinton was making isn't -- wasn't about the relief
recovery after the storm hit, it was about the preparations beforehand. He
was talking about the fact that buses should have been there to get people
out who couldn't have done it themselves.

So is that something that President Bush should have been more attuned to?
Or is that something that he really relied on the Mayor --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, there's going to be a bipartisan investigation by
Congress. They're going to do a thorough investigation and look at all
these issues. There were certain -- there were responsibilities at all
levels of government: the federal, state, and local. The President has made
it very clear that he accepts responsibility for the federal government's
role. He wants to see what went wrong and what needs to be fixed for the
future so that we can make sure that we are better prepared in the future
to respond to such situations, whether they be natural disasters or
terrorist attacks.

Q Does the President still think it was a good idea to get President
Clinton on board and give him this kind of platform?

MR. McCLELLAN: We appreciate the efforts of President Bush and President
Clinton to reach out to the private sector and individuals to encourage
even more giving from the American people to support those who have been
affected by this natural disaster.

And, look, this is a difference over policies. I think when you boil it
down to -- boil it down, it's just difference over policies. And that's why
I said we welcome a discussion of the policies to address the causes of
poverty and inequality that have occurred, that -- I mean, it's a long
history that led to the poverty and inequality; it is a long history of
injustice, that goes back to slavery and segregation. And we need to
address these issues, and this President has been working to address those
issues in new and bold ways. And all you have to do is go and look at the
record and look at what we've accomplished for the American people,
particularly for low-income Americans and people that are living in
poverty.

The Medicare is another one; seniors starting in 2006, low-income seniors
are going to have virtually everything paid for when it comes to their
prescription drug benefit.

Q Can I just clarify one thing you said before. Obviously, the President
said Andy Card talked to Mayor Nagin. Has the President talked to him,
personally, yet -- privately, not just in public? Or will he?

MR. McCLELLAN: Privately? Yes. He's seen him a number of times. He sees him
every time we visit the region.

Q No, I mean, this morning, since -- about this particular issue.

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, this morning Andy Card has been in touch with him a
couple of times. Admiral Allen is meeting with him today. The President
made it clear that Admiral Allen is our point person, working with Mayor
Nagin, to address these issues. And we're all working together toward that
shared goal of getting people back to New Orleans as soon as we can. But we
want to make sure that the conditions are right for the people to return
safely. And it's important that we take into account all these concerns.

Q Scott, it seems that Karl Rove has already made the assessment for the
administration as to what went wrong with Katrina, because according to
reports, he said in Aspen, at the Sportsmen's Annual Off the Record that
the only mistake that we made with Katrina was not overriding the local
government. If this is, indeed, true, what would have been done
differently?

MR. McCLELLAN: I'm not sure that's an accurate account.

Q Well, there are reports that you guys are trying to blame it on the local
government --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, the report is put out by critics, so I'm just not
going to --

Q `Well, what would have been done differently, then, if what Karl Rove is
saying is true? If you would have taken over? The response was late, the
federal government --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, one of the issues that the President talked about that
needs to be looked at is in a case like this where you have a storm of this
magnitude and scope, one like we've never seen before, then -- and the
local and state first responders are essentially overwhelmed, then what do
you do to address that issue? Does the federal government -- we need to
look at the role of the federal government, specifically the military.

We set up the Northern Command after September 11th -- that was the first
time the military had set up a Northern Command here to cover America. They
have commands all across the world. But he said the other day that we need
to look at this issue. And the military brings with it the logistics and
capabilities needed to move in quickly and address some of these issues. So
that's one of the areas that needs to be looked at as we move forward, to
apply the lessons from this response effort.

Q So was that the only mistake, or are there more mistakes --

MR. McCLELLAN: That's what the investigation will look into. They'll look
at all these issues so that we can make sure we're better prepared in the
future.

Q And also on voting rights, the Carter-Baker Commission. What's going on
as far as the administration? We know that you're in support of voting
rights items that are up for renewal. But I also understand the
administration is looking at possibly tweaking --

MR. McCLELLAN: There is really not an update from what we've previously
said. In terms of the reforms put forward by President Carter and Secretary
Baker, the President appreciates their work. He received the report this
morning in the Oval Office and thanked the two for their work, as well as
the other members of the 21-member commission. And we will be reviewing it
carefully. We want to make sure that we continue to move forward on steps
to protect the integrity of the voting systems and things of that nature.

Q The President has made clear that he expects the local and state
authorities to take the lead in deciding exactly how New Orleans should be
rebuilt and to work closely with the federal government, which will pay a
lot of bills for this. Today we've seen how very different the agendas and
approaches are in something as fundamental as when people begin to move
back in. What mechanism is there going to be for state and local and
federal officials to work together in the longer-term process? Do you need
a new agency, even temporarily, to oversee this? Is any thought being given
to taking this out of, sort of, the normal functions of government and
turning it over to some other entity?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, there are a lot of ideas that we're exploring for the
longer-term rebuilding. The President announced some initial steps that
we're taking to address some of the challenges that we face. There are
enormous challenges that we will face going forward. Obviously, rebuilding
the infrastructure is a high priority.

But I think that people have seen that there is a good working relationship
that has been developed between the federal, state and local authorities.
Admiral Allen is our primary person in charge in the region, overseeing the
operational activities. He is working very closely with state and local
officials, meeting not only with the Mayor, but the heads of the various
parishes around New Orleans. The President has met with those officials, as
well.

Q But, obviously, Admiral Allen is not going to oversee the reconstruction
of New Orleans. I mean, who, ultimately, on a federal level becomes
responsible for this? It's a huge, you know, decades-long undertaking.

MR. McCLELLAN: That's why we set up the task force and we've got every
Cabinet department that has any responsibility in these areas is involved
in this effort. That's why I mentioned at the top the nine different
working groups looking at these areas. And people are continuing to come up
with various ideas to address the longer-term needs, as well. And we'll
continue to talk about that as we move forward.

Q Scott, we all understand that the President has proposed cuts in his
budget -- it's his budget and he has a desire to work with Congress. But
the budget pre-dated Katrina. Given that his leadership has come under
question because of the hurricane, why does he not articulate a vision for
the future, beyond endless deficits? What are the cuts going to be?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, actually, we've talked about this over that last
couple of weeks, Ed, maybe you've missed some of those discussions, because
we have briefed you all on it. Obviously, you have significant costs that
are going to be borne by the federal government in the relief and
rebuilding efforts related to Katrina, but we have an obligation to help
meet the needs of the people. The private sector and individuals are also
showing the generosity of America and providing significant support to the
people who have lost all of what they had or much of what they had in the
region, as well. And we've -- I'm sorry, what?

Q That's not what I'm asking.

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, but I think it's important for your readers or the
people watching this to be able to have a full understanding of the
picture. And that's why it's important to talk -- all these are
interrelated, Ed. And I think it's important for people to hear these
things. But you're asking specifically about spending cuts, right?

Q Yes --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, we have proposed significant savings in our budget. As
I said, that's a good starting point. But the President recognizes that the
significant costs that we're going to -- that are going to be borne by the
federal government relating to the Katrina rebuilding efforts needs to be
offset by additional cuts elsewhere in the budget. And that's why we are
working with Congress to identify areas where we can cut. And those areas
would be the unnecessary spending.

We've got important priorities that we've got to meet, and we will meet
those priorities, but we need to look for cuts elsewhere in the budget. The
President has always outlined budgets to fund our priorities and then hold
the line on spending elsewhere, where they're not the essential or
necessary spending that is needed. And that's a process that Congress has
an important role to play in, and we've got to work closely with them to do
that. But I think everybody recognizes, also, that the costs we're talking
about related to Katrina are going to have a short-term impact on the
deficit, they're one-time costs. But we believe we can continue to meet the
President's commitment to halve the deficit by 2009.

Q Is he dusting off his veto pen?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, as you know, the President does not have line-item
veto power. That is something that we have advocated and believe he should
have, and that's something we continue to urge Congress to act on, as well.
But he's also made it -- and Congress has been moving forward on the budget
that we outlined to meet some of the overall budget framework that we
outlined. But there are additional actions that can be taken on savings
that we proposed. That's a good starting point, and then we'll also be
looking at other areas we can cut, too.

Q Just a quick -- one last question. Does the President, then, agree with
Representative DeLay that there's no more fat in the budget?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, actually David asked that question at the beginning,
and I talked about how Congress has yet to act on some of the savings that
we've proposed, and that we also need to look at other unnecessary spending
--

Q The answer is "no."

MR. McCLELLAN: -- and ways we can cut that.

Go ahead, Wendell.

Q Several questions. Are you saying that Congress will need to enact more
cuts than those you have already proposed that lawmakers have, over the
past several years, refused to provide you?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, it certainly would be a good start on some of the
savings that we proposed. But we also want to look at additional areas
where we can cut unnecessary spending.

I don't want to try to prejudge the different areas from this podium.
That's something we're going to be working closely with Congress to
identify. The President made it very clear he had directed his Budget
Director, Josh Bolten, to move forward with Congress to identify
unnecessary spending that can be cut.

Q But just to make sure I understand, to pay for Katrina will require more
cuts in the budget than those Congress has already refused to give you?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, again, I don't have the budget in front of me, so if
they did all the --

Q It doesn't --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, hang on. No, it does. If they did all the savings we
proposed, and then you have to look at the overall cost of Katrina, you're
asking me to, first of all, try to get into speculating about what the
Katrina cost may be. We don't know what the longer-term costs are going to
be at this point. That's something that we're continuing to assess. So I
think you'd have to look at what those longer-term costs are, and how much
you need to offset, and then look at what we've already proposed in savings
and whether or not they move forward on those different aspects. I don't
think that's a question you can just answer without looking at all those
different areas.

Q Scott, Admiral Allen has made clear he has no real problem with the
repopulation of Algiers and with business owners moving into one specific
area of New Orleans during the day. I think that's phases one and two of
Mayor Nagin's repopulation program. So where is it you all --

MR. McCLELLAN: He said that we support the Mayor's plan. The question --

Q Where is it you all diverge?

MR. McCLELLAN: -- it's a question of timing. Where Admiral Allen talked
about some of those areas earlier, certainly in the areas where there's
still flooding or the waters have not receded fully or been pumped out of
there, you have concerns about the bacteria, the high levels of bacteria in
that water. There's only been preliminary testing done on that water. And
there's also only been preliminary assessments done on the air quality.
That's another area that you need to look at, is the air.

Q But I don't think the Mayor is proposing people going back into areas
that are still underwater. So where is it you, the federal government --

MR. McCLELLAN: Understood, but that's why -- that's why I pointed out
exactly what Admiral Allen was talking about. Not only do you have the
health concerns with the water, but there may be some concerns with the
air. And that's something that's still continuing to be tested. I can't
prejudge what those tests are going to be from this podium. And then you
have the basic services issue, which the Admiral talked about. You need to
get those basic services back up and running. The 911 system -- you need to
have an evacuation plan in place in case another storm hits and causes
flooding and possibly breaches those levees which are in a weakened state
-- which are in a weakened state.

Q I understand the issues you raise. I'm trying to figure out,
specifically, where is it in the Mayor's plan that you disagree with him?
Is it after phase two that you disagree with him?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, maybe that's a good question to direct to Admiral
Allen, in terms of all the specifics. I don't have the Mayor's plan in
front of me right now. He's been discussing that with the Mayor. But he
talked about the various areas of concern that we have in terms of the
timing, and those are issues that we're working with the Mayor to address.
They have a good relationship. We're all moving together on the shared goal
of getting people back to New Orleans as soon as it's possible to do so
safely.

Q Scott, Andy Card has talked to Mayor Nagin twice today. The President has
spoken about concerns about the Mayor's repopulation plan. Surely you know
at what point you and the Mayor diverge.

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, and Admiral Allen is our primary point person on the
ground in the region. He's going to be providing briefings again today and
as we move forward. And he'll continue to talk about these issues. I think
we need to let the Admiral and the Mayor have their discussions. And then
there will be an opportunity to talk more about it at that point.

Go ahead.

Q The President has labeled Iran as one of the axis of evil countries, and
it is clear they are going to move forward with their nuclear program and
they're more defiant about it than ever before. On Friday, the President of
Russia, President Putin, was here, and he is insisting Iran end their
nuclear development capabilities. Where does the relationship stand right
now between President Bush and President Putin, especially in the war on
terrorism?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, we have very good cooperation in the war on terrorism.
The President talked about that in his press availability with President
Putin on Friday. He talked about how we're working together to move forward
to win the war on terrorism, and he talked about how we're working to
address proliferation and nuclear security issues, as well.

In terms of Iran, we both share a commitment to making sure that Iran does
not develop a nuclear weapon. And we continue to support the efforts of the
Europeans to resolve this diplomatically. We urge Iran to return to the
negotiations as soon as possible and live up to the agreement they made
with the Europeans. We've expressed our concerns about Iran's behavior.
Those concerns are well-known.

And that's why it's important for Iran to get back to the negotiations and
abide by what they said they would do with the Europeans, which means
suspending their nuclear enrichment activities.

Q Why would President Putin be helping them build a nuclear reactor, and
then they can use that to build a nuclear weapon? It's a pretty easy thing
to understand. So shouldn't President Putin be not helping them at all, if
they're our allies?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, that's why we've had discussions with President Putin.
I don't know that I necessarily agree with the characterization. One thing
the President has talked about is the fuel cycle issue and the ability of
Russia to provide that fuel, but also take it back so that you would have
an objective guarantee in place. That's something the Europeans have talked
about in the negotiations. That's why we've been supporting the efforts of
the Europeans to resolve this diplomatically, and obviously, noncompliance
is a concern of ours, given Iran's history of deceiving the international
community and hiding their activities.

Q Back to Katrina, what's your reaction to Senator Kerry's speech today at
Brown University where he described --

MR. McCLELLAN: Haven't seen it.

Q -- the recovery package as constituting "a vast laboratory for right-wing
ideological experiments"?

MR. McCLELLAN: I haven't seen his comments. I wouldn't want to comment
directly on something I haven't seen. The President has commented on the
policies that we're pursuing and what we're trying to do for the people in
the region. The President is interested in pursuing good ideas that work.
And he's said he's open to all good ideas from the state, local, and
federal level. We've all got to work together in a united way to help the
people get back on their feet, and then to rebuild their lives and rebuild
their communities.

And that's what we're committed to doing. That's why we're working closely
with state and local officials. The President has visited the region a
number of times, we'll be back there tomorrow to continue talking about how
we move forward together. I think the American people all want us to work
together in a united way to get things done on behalf of the people who
have been affected.

Q Okay, but in the spirit of what you just said, isn't it possible that the
kinds of policy choices that the President has made are likely to draw
attacks from both the right and the left that will stand in the way of
getting this money out efficiently and quickly?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, first of all, Finlay, you have to keep in mind that
the President said that the rebuilding effort is going to be locally
inspired. That means local and state officials are the ones who are going
to come up with the vision for making the region even stronger and better.
We're all committed. That's one of the three commitments that the President
said we're focused on keeping, and that is, making sure that the
communities we rebuild are stronger and better than before. This provides
us an opportunity to renew our commitment to helping all those in the
region who have been affected.

Q But does that mean, then, that if state and local officials agree that
they don't want vouchers or they don't want --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, you can play all sorts of "what ifs." What we're doing
is working with the state and local officials to help the people. And he
said it's going to be locally inspired, and he said it's also important to
make sure that the jobs that are going to be created in the rebuilding
effort are going primarily and mostly to the people who have been affected,
so that that can help get them back up on their feet.

And the federal government is going to work in support of the state and
local vision. He made it very clear that this will be a locally driven
vision, and the federal government is going to support that. And we're
going to support that by offering ideas and ways for them to move forward
to address the needs of the people. And that's where -- our focus is on the
needs of the people. If others want to get into criticism, that's their
business. We're focused on helping the people in the region and working
together with state and local officials to do so.

Q So if they reject a --

MR. McCLELLAN: There you go with the "what if" game again. And we can play
"what ifs" all day long. What we're doing is working in partnership and in
close cooperation with the state and local officials. The President made it
very clear that that's what we would do going forward.

Q Scott, what if -- I'm just kidding. (Laughter.) In answer to Ed's
question on the veto, you started wishing that you had a line-item veto,
which you don't have and you're not going to get this year, at least. Is
the President committed to vetoing these large spending bills if they do
not contain significant cuts to pay for Katrina?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, he's talked about specific spending bills in the past,
and we have issued veto threats on various pieces of legislation. We were
able to bring some of those spending bills down significantly because of
the President's leadership, and our urging Congress not to act in a way
that would lead to increasing our deficit substantially more.

And what the President -- one thing that you have to keep in mind over the
last few years, the President outlines an overall budget framework, and he
has done so in a way that continues to slow the growth of non-security
discretionary spending, which is important. He's also tried to move forward
to address some of the real spending concerns when it comes to Social
Security and Medicare, for instance, entitlements, or Medicaid even, and to
address some of those issues where there is unnecessary spending that needs
to be cut, or the growth slowed.

And when Congress moves forward in a way that meets the overall budget
framework numbers, I think it's important to keep in mind that the
President doesn't have that line -- that's why I talked about that
line-item veto power. And that when they meet the commitments that we
outlined, that's important progress toward slowing that growth in the
non-security discretionary spending. So, I mean, look at -- it's come down
significantly each year that we've been in office.

Q The early part of the answer sounded like a yes, that he would veto bills
if they did not contain significant cuts. Is that correct?

MR. McCLELLAN: That's a "what if." (Laughter.)

Q That's not a "what if."

Q Thank you.

MR. McCLELLAN: Look, we're going to --

Q It is, but, I mean, in the past you've issued threats like that before
about, you know, trying to contain spending. I mean, is that something he
is going to do when Congress doesn't come in with the --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, let's talk about various spending issues, and then
we'll -- we put out statements of our policies on those various spending
bills.

Q You said the budget you proposed is a starting point. Are you -- you're
seeking more cuts --

MR. McCLELLAN: The savings in the budget that we proposed.

Q The savings, right. So you're seeking more cuts beyond --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, we're going to be working with Congress to identify
additional unnecessary spending that can be cut, as well.

Q Are you going to propose new spending cuts?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, we'll continue to keep you updated as we move forward
with Congress. But I expect that we -- as we move forward with Congress, we
will all work together to identify additional areas where cuts might be
able to be made.

Q Thank you.

MR. McCLELLAN: Thank you.

END 1:21 P.M. EDT

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