White House Gaggle

By Adam Sharon
President’s Schedule

President Bush welcomed Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao to the White House today. Following the morning state arrival ceremony, President Bush will meet the Premier in the Oval Office. The two leaders will then hold an expanded meeting with additional advisors and then lunch together. This afternoon, President Bush will drop-in on a National Security Advisor meeting focused upon trade and economic issues in Sub-Saharan Africa. This evening, both leaders will attend a performance of the Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center.

USA Freedom Corps Director Resigns

Press Secretary Scott McClellan announced today that John Bridgeland, USA Freedom Corps Director, will resign from his position. President Bush, McClellan stated, will "miss his service to the country." McClellan would not specify the reasoning behind Mr. Bridgeland’s resignation.

Bush Meeting with Premier Wen Jiabao

Mr. McClellan told reporters that the administration supports the one China policy and that "we oppose unilateral steps by China on Taiwan that would alter Taiwan’s status." President Bush will discuss this issue with Premier Wen Jiabao today. Both leaders will also talk about the possibility for a technical cooperation program on currency differences and monetary policy with officials from the U.S. Treasury Department and the Central Bank of China.

North Korea

McClellan called on North Korea to "achieve a denuclearized" Korean peninsula, adding that the Bush administration is "ready for new rounds of talks without preconditions." The U.S. would only work through the six party multilateral conference on this issue, McClellan added. According to wire reports, North Korea stated on Tuesday that it would freeze its nuclear weapons if, in exchange, the U.S. would remove North Korea from the list of terror-sponsoring nations and provide fuel aid.