White House Gaggle

By Shirley Chang
January 24, 2005

President’s Schedule

The President had his usual round of briefings this morning at Camp David. He also participated in a National Security Council meeting and at noon he will be calling in to the 32nd Annual March for Life event in D.C. and will make a few remarks. Then he will arrive back this afternoon to the White House. The President announced today the designation of a presidential delegation to Poland to attend the 60th Anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz/Birkenau led by Vice President Cheney. President Bush will host a working dinner for French President Jacques Chirac in Brussels on February 21. The President plans to be in Brussels for meetings with NATO European Union leaders on February 22 and the President is looking forward to working with President Chirac and all our European allies to strengthen freedom, democracy and security throughout the world.

Social Security Crisis

An AP reporter asked Scott to comment on the fact that two Republicans have now questioned whether Social Security is really a crisis. Scott answered that as the issue had been discussed last week, "We can debate words like crisis or not a crisis but you can’t ignore the facts. The facts are that Social Security has a serious problem. When you look at the facts, it is a system that is unsustainable over time and it only gets worse, year after year. That’s why we need to act now." The Social Security Administration estimates that for each year that passes, it will cost yet another $600 billion to fix the system. Scott said, "We have nearly a $11 trillion unfunded liability facing Social Security and the President believes that it’s a serious problem that we need to work together to address now. Many members on both sides of the aisle recognize the demographic facts facing Social Security. President Bush will continue working closely with members of Congress in a bi-partisan way to address it and as time goes by, he will be speaking more about Social Security at the State of the Union Address.

Pentagon Authorization of Clandestine Operations in Afghanistan and Iraq

The Department of Defense said in a statement (pointing out inaccuracies in a Washington Post report regarding clandestine operations in Iraq) that there is no unit directly reportable to the Secretary of Defense for clandestine operations as described in the Post article. Scott said that there have been a number of reports, "including the 9/11 Commission Report that talked about the importance and the need to expand and enhance human intelligence capabilities and the Secretary of Defense and the Pentagon have taken steps to do so. Those are steps that are coordinated with the intelligence community and the Department of Defense also stays in regular consultation with the appropriate congressional committees." President Bush is aware of the DOD’s efforts to expand human intelligence capabilities and he supports this effort to collect intelligence to enhance battlefield capabilities.

Race/Gender in Social Security Benefits

Scott was asked whether the President believes that race or gender should be a factor when considering any potential adjustments to benefits in Social Security. Scott, "Again, there are a lot of ideas being discussed but the president has made clear what his approach is and it is based on the principles that he outlined." The reporter kept pushing for a straight answer. Scott stuck by his original answer by saying that the President has already expressed his views on this issue and now he just wants to work together to get things done. Another reporter was persistent in asking when exactly the President would be speaking on more possible solutions and Scott answered, " . . . That’s what we discuss with members of Congress about how we move forward together, not with members of the media."

The President and Roe v. Wade

When asked whether the President would be moving forward with repealing Roe v. Wade, Scott said, "The President believes we ought to work together to promote a culture of life in America. He has made it very clear that whether we agree or disagree on the issue of abortion that we can all work together to take practical steps to reduce the number of abortions. That’s what this President has done." As far as repealing, Scott stated that the President has made his views clear on the Barbara Walters show.

Contamination of Stem Cells

Scott, "This is an issue that has been previously raised and discussed. We’ve known from the very beginning that the lines that were authorized for research had this particular trait . . . and the scientists at NIH are very well aware of it and remain confident that the stem cell lines that are available will provide us with the adequate supply to do the most basic research." The NIH had asked the FDA to specifically look at the issue and the FDA concluded that the same issue is presented by human feeder cells. "There is still much uncertainty about the promise of stem cell research. We are only at the stage of the beginning of basic research to understand the promise of embryonic stem cell research."

GI Death Benefit Raise

When asked whether President Bush supports the proposal that death benefits to families of fallen troops be raised, Scott’s answer was that the President believes that we ought to do everything possible to support troops and their families, "particularly the families of the fallen." The President will work closely with congressional leaders on this issue.

Elections in Iraq
Scott was asked how President Bush feels about the voter registration turnout for the Iraqi elections. Scott replied, "It is already a significant event for the Iraqi people that they are moving forward for the first time on elections to freely choose their leaders and in terms of the elections itself, the Iraqi people will make that determination. What we see is that the Iraqi people want to vote and choose their leaders; they want to assume more responsibility for their future. There is a lot of enthusiasm among the Iraqi people for the election. "According to the International Republican Institute poll, released last week, over 80% of Iraqis who were polled said they were either very likely or somewhat likely to vote. "The United States needs to continue working with Iraqi security forces to provide the most secure environment as possible for as many Iraqis who are eligible and want to vote to be able to participate in the election." As far as the President’s satisfaction with Iraqi participation, Scott answers, "What’s important is how the Iraqi people feel about the election. That’s what I’m trying to tell you."