White House Gaggle

By Victoria Jones
October 10, 2006

President’s Schedule

The President had his usual briefings. He will meet with the President of Peru this morning and then he will have policy time. At 1.15pm he will make remarks at a conference on school safety and then depart for Georgia. The President will attend a Mac Collins for Congress reception and return to the White House later tonight.

North Korea

Asked if he could confirm that the North Koreans had conducted a nuclear test, White House Press Secretary Tony Snow said that this may take some time as it is a complex undertaking. He said it is possible we may never be able to determine fully. The preliminary data indicates that we cannot tell if the test is nuclear or not.

Asked if there was a new policy towards North Korea, Snow replied that there is a continuation of the same policy, which is to try to use the leverage of the neighbors to make it clear to the North Koreans that they have to make a choice. The rational choice is to join the six party talks, and to make available the economic, political and security guarantees and opportunities that were offered on September 19 of last year. There is a new sense of resolution on the part of all the allies, and in particular those most aligned with the North Koreans, South Korea and China.

Asked what evidence there is that doing the same thing with regard to North Korea will get a different result, Snow replied that the US is not doing the same thing. He said that appeasement was tried for a long time, and the North Koreans have been trying to test the resolve of the nations in the six party talks, and see if there was some way to create daylight between the parties. Snow said what is going on now is not the same; it is a real determination to make clear that the old way of dealing with Kim Jong Il did not work and it is time to try something new.

The point was made that North Korea has achieved what the US said they would not be allowed to. Snow said that the test could involve something very old and off the shelf. It is significant that at each stage along the way the North Koreans have tried to test. Now you see a realization in public by neighbors that it is time to have sanctions, and there are discussions in the Security Council about which sanctions are appropriate, he said.

Snow said the North Koreans have failed their own citizens, who continue to be the victims of mass starvation. There are wretched conditions, dire poverty, and failure. There is a growing sense of unity in the six party process, and it is a formidable force among the other five parties.

Snow said that the North Koreans should renounce, in a verifiable way, nuclear programs and ambitions, to replace any nuclear programs including civilian nuclear power, in exchange for energy and economic assistance, for political ties and security. All of that was offered on September 19 of last year, Snow said.

Snow was asked about former Secretary of State James Baker’s statement that the US should engage in diplomacy. Snow quoted Baker as saying, in part, "I can’t make the judgment here this morning because I don’t know what the other elements involved in it are". Snow said the other elements are that there are conversations ongoing with the North Koreans. If it was the US and North Korea, the US would weaken its hand and not strengthen it because we would lose the ability to work with those who have the most leverage, the Chinese and South Koreans. We have been having conversations through the mediations of other parties, Snow added.

The test is significant because the North Koreans took the posture that they would reject the advice given them by the South Koreans and the other parties in the six party talks. Now the other parties, particularly those in the region, have taken another look and have decided to be tougher on the North Koreans, Snow said. The results will take some time to unfold.

Snow was asked if he was trying to downplay the importance of the test. He said that it is important, but that there are questions about the yield. The people involved need to be determined to ensure they get to the point of having a non nuclear peninsula. It is known that North Korea’s stated policy is in defiance of their prior pledges and trading commitments.

The US has made a series of proposals at the UN Security Council. The conversations on these began before any test was conducted because it was important to get all the parties to start thinking about what might happen should such an event take place. As time goes on, people will gravitate towards finding the proper mix that works.

Political Polls

Snow was asked about three major polls just released that show the President’s approval rating well below 40%. Snow said the same polls a week ago had a different result. It was pointed out that that was before the Foley scandal. The President is concerned about doing his job properly and trying to advance the security and safety of the American people, Snow said. There has been scant coverage in the press of the good economy, low unemployment, etc. Snow conceded the Foley story has had an impact on public opinion. There are other issues, Snow said, that deserve discussion.

It was pointed out that Iraq might not help the President. Snow said that the solution to the war on terror is to face what is going on forthrightly and with determination. Both parties say you have to win the war in Iraq, but who has a plan for doing so, he asked.