Administration of Joseph R. Biden, Jr., 2023

October 5, 2023

The President. Well, General Brown, welcome to the Oval as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. It's great to have you here. And your experience in combat and your experience in administering at the Justiceâat the Justice!âat the Defense Department and your leadership in just about every theater.

You've been around the world, as they say, as a commander. And you're a trusted leader of the Joint Force, and you're accelerating the change we need, both in terms of materiel and in terms of the strategies.

And, C.Q., your insight and counsel, we're looking for. The Secretary of Defense has been bragging about you a long time, and so has the head of the CIA. So we're going to get going.

And today we're going to discuss the intelligence matters that are current. You know, you've beenâyou've kept current on all of these, I know. But we're going to discuss Ukraine, Iran, the D.P.R.K., and also our continued enhancement of stability in the Indo-Pacific and that whole area.

So, anyway, there's a lot we have to do. And I just wanted to welcome you and thank you for being here. That's why we let the press in here for this. We usually don't have them in for theâ for the PDB. But, welcome.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Q. "C.Q." Brown, Jr., USAF. Thank

you.

The President. Okay, guysââ

Q. Mr. President, are you open to tying Ukraine aid to the border? Are you open to tying

Ukraine aid to the border?

[*At this point, several reporters began asking questions at once.*]

Funding for the Security Barrier at the Mexico-U.S. Border

Q. You pledged not to build another foot of border wall. What changed?

The President. Nothing.

[*Reporters continued asking questions at once.*]

Q. Nothing has changed?

[*Reporters continued asking questions at once.*]

The President. I'll answer one question on the border wall. The border wallâthe money was appropriated for the border wall. I tried to get to them to reappropriate it, to redirect that money. They didn't. They wouldn't. And in the meantime, there's nothing under the law other than they have to use the money for what it was appropriated. I can't stop that.

Q. Do you believe the border wall works?

The President. No. Okay, thank you.

NOTE: The President spoke at 12:17 p.m. in the Oval Office at the White House. In his remarks, he referred to Director of the Central Intelligence Agency William J. Burns.

Categories: Addresses and Remarks : Ukraine situation, briefing; Interviews With the News Media : Exchanges with reporters, White House.

Locations: Washington, DC.

Names: Austin, Lloyd J., III; Brown, Charles Q. "C.Q.," Jr.; Burns, William J.

Subjects: Central Intelligence Agency; Indo-Pacific, economic and security cooperation; Joint Chiefs of Staff; Mexico, border with U.S., infrastructure and security; Russia, conflict in Ukraine; Secretary of Defense; Ukraine, Russian invasion and airstrikes.

DCPD Number: DCPD202300873.