White House Gaggle

By Scarlette Officer
President’s Schedule

The President began the day with his usual briefings. At 11:25, the President welcomes the President of Poland, Aleksander Kwasniewski. McClellan said that Poland is a great friend and ally of the United States. The President congratulates Kwasniewski for his strong leadership and his continued support of the United States in the war on terror. At 3:30 PM, the President will meet with House and Senate leaders in the Oval Office. McClellan said that the President will focus on legislative priorities for the upcoming year, even though it is an election year. The President will also emphasize issues that were addressed in the State of the Union Address.

Iraq

A reporter noted that Dr. David Kay, a former Iraqi weapons inspector, indicated that the intelligence that the President received prior to the war was "flat out wrong". McClellan countered this comment by saying that Dr. Kay did concede that Iraq was a growing threat. Kay even gave a progress report to Congress indicating that programs for weapons of mass destruction were being pursued. McClellan said that "the President believes it is important to compare what we knew before the war to what we gathered on the ground through the Iraqi survey". This survey is ongoing. He emphasized that the President made the right decision by removing Saddam Hussein from power.

Budget
A reporter questioned the direction of the budget deficit. McClellan responded by saying that the President will address the issue on Monday and still plans to cut the budget deficit in half. McClellan said that a recession and the war on terror caused the deficit and that increasing taxes would not help the economy.