[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2001, Book II)]
[December 31, 2001]
[Pages 1556-1559]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks on New Year's Eve and an Exchange With Reporters in Crawford, 
Texas
December 31, 2001

    The President. First of all, I wish everybody a Happy New Year; 2002 
is going to be a great year for America. And we will continue to pursue 
our mission in fighting terror. We'll work hard to make sure our economy 
rebounds. But most of all, the Nation will continue to embrace the

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culture of compassion, which really, really flourished right after 
September the 11th.
    I'm looking forward to an early evening tonight. I guess at the age 
of 55, it's expected that--or it's okay for a guy to go to bed at about 
9 p.m., maybe 10 p.m. So I don't plan anything glamorous for New Year's 
Eve.
    I've got to tell you, there's nothing more relaxing than being in 
Crawford, Texas. I'm spending as much time outdoors as I can. I spent--
after my briefing this morning with National Security Council, I was 
able to spend about 3 hours in the canyons, cleaning underbrush. And I 
feel refreshed and fortunate that we've got such a beautiful piece of 
land to live on.
    I'll be glad to answer a few questions; then I'm going to go have a 
cheeseburger.

Usama bin Laden and Mullah Omar

    Q. Any information on the whereabouts of bin Laden or Omar? Is there 
a new pursuit underway now?
    The President. No. Yes, I mean, the same pursuit: We're going to get 
him, and it's just a matter of when. You know, you hear all kinds of 
reports and all kinds of rumors. You've got people saying he's in a 
cave, people saying he's dead, people saying he's in Pakistan. And all I 
know is that he's running, and anytime you get a person running, it 
means you're going to get him pretty soon.
    And same with Mullah Omar. It's just a matter of time, and I'm 
patient, and so is our military. There is no artificial timelines or, 
you know, deadlines. The definition of success is making sure the 
Taliban is out of existence, helping rebuild Afghanistan, and disrupting 
this international terrorist network. And we're doing a darn good job of 
it, too.

Situation in South Asia

    Q. Sir, are tensions easing in India and Pakistan, now that Pakistan 
has arrested the leader of a militant group? And just one more.
    The President. Sure.
    Q. Would you urge President--or Prime Minister Vajpayee to meet with 
President Musharraf next week?
    The President. Well, a couple of days ago I had a good talk with 
both Prime Minister Vajpayee and 
President Musharraf. I urged President 
Musharraf to do everything he could to crack down on the terrorist 
network that had bombed the Indian Parliament or raided the Indian 
Parliament. In my conversation with the Prime Minister, I said I can 
understand how he feels. If someone attacked the U.S. Capitol, I'd feel 
angry, too. I urged--however, I urged--I explained to the Indian Prime 
Minister that while I understood his anger, I was hoping that they were 
not headed for war. I said, ``Give us all a chance to work with 
President Musharraf to bring the terrorists to justice.''
    And today, as you know, he apprehended 
the head of what they call LET. That's after 
he had apprehended the head of JEM. So 
he's cracking down hard, and I appreciate his efforts. Terror is terror, 
and the fact that the Pakistani President is after terrorists is a good 
sign.

Argentina

    Q. Mr. President, with the middle class now rioting in Argentina, 
are you concerned that that country's economic crisis is developing into 
a real political crisis? And has the time come for the U.S. to do 
something more substantial----
    The President. Well, I talked to President--interim President 
Saa, and no longer President Saa--and 
I'm, you know, obviously, I'm worried about it. Argentina is a very 
important part of our hemisphere. I've heard that they're thinking about 
expediting elections, and that will be good. And as soon as they can 
get--I'm confident the country will stay together until they get 
elections.

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    And once they elect a President, we'll work with him. But the future 
President has got to deal with the economic crisis at hand. And once 
they come up with a plan that will sustain economic growth, then we're 
willing to work with them. We're willing to provide technical assistance 
to the Government, through the IMF, and hopefully, they'll get their 
house in order here pretty quickly.
    Q. Still no need for more direct U.S. intervention or aid?
    The President. I'm not sure what that means. You know, Argentina is 
a vibrant democracy; they've been around a long time; they have 
elections. You know, they're going to have elections here pretty 
quickly. As soon as they get a democratically elected President in 
place, we'll work with him as--as a matter of fact, I anticipate I'll be 
calling the person as soon as he wins.

Homeland Security

    Q. What can Americans expect in the upcoming year, in terms of 
homeland security? What's next, sir?
    The President. Well, what's next is really a focus on health, a 
focus on--in terms of making sure the public health systems work. We're 
reviewing all our visa policies. We're looking at our immigration 
policies. We're looking at border policies, both with Canada and with 
Mexico. And we'll continue doing what we're doing now, which is, anytime 
we get a lead, we're going to disrupt--we're going to bring them in and 
give them a chance to protect Americans.
    The FBI, the whole culture of the FBI has changed, for the better. 
The FBI's main task now is to protect Americans from further attack. The 
country is on alert. And a classic case was the person who tried to put the bomb in his shoe, and a flight 
attendant on the American flight alertly notified people, and they got 
it. And he's now--we're now giving him a chance to tell us what he knows 
about terror and about Al Qaida.
    But 2002 will--the country will still be on alert; we'll still be 
working hard to protect the American people.
    Q. Is there a special alert now? The terrorists have shown an 
inclination to strike around New Year's----
    The President. Well, or Christmas. I mean, there's all kinds of 
excuses for them to attack. Let's just put it this way, that the 
administration and the Government has not--is on alert and have been 
since 9/11. And the American people realize we have a new culture, and 
that is one of being vigilant. We've got people working overtime during 
the holidays; you know, we've got CAPs still flying around. Anybody 
tries to harm an American, there's a good chance we're going to get him.

Vision for 2002

    Q. [Inaudible]--for the American people?
    The President. Well, it is that we're a blessed nation. God has 
richly blessed America. And for that, we ought to be grateful. We're a 
nation that has gone through incredible suffering and hardship. Yet, as 
a result of it, we're a strong nation and a united nation. And 2002, in 
my judgment, is going to be a great year.
    It's going to be a great year because people are going to be able to 
find work again. It's going to be a great year because our military is 
going to do the job the Americans expect. It'll be a great year because 
at home we'll protect the American people. And it's going to be a great 
year primarily because Americans have taken a look inward, reassessed 
their values, have realized that some of the basics in life are that 
which is most important: love of faith, love of family. And as a result, 
our communities have been stronger. So I'm really looking forward to 
2002.
    I'm also looking forward to my cheeseburger. [Laughter]
    Q. Any resolutions?

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    The President. Resolutions? Eat fewer cheeseburgers. [Laughter]
    Thank you all.

New Year's Eve Plans

    Q. Do you have friends coming over tonight?
    The President. Yes, we've got two couples from Austin and a couple 
from Lubbock. And the Lubbock couple are generally--has spent, I guess, 
New Year's Eve with us for, like, a decade now, I think. And that's it.
    Have fun; enjoy yourselves. Thanks.

Note: The President spoke at 12:44 p.m. at the Coffee Station 
restaurant. In his remarks, he referred to Usama bin Laden, leader of 
the Al Qaida terrorist organization; Mullah Mohammed Omar, former head 
of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan; Prime Minister Atal Bihari 
Vajpayee of India; President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan; Hafiz 
Mohammed Saeed, head of the terrorist group Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LET); 
Maulana Masood Azhar, head of the terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed 
(JEM); former interim President Adolfo Rodriguez Saa of Argentina; and 
Richard C. Reid, a passenger on American Airlines Flight AA63 who 
allegedly tried to ignite an explosive device in his shoe while en route 
from Paris to Miami on December 22. A tape was not available for 
verification of the content of these remarks.