    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book I)]
    [February 25, 2002]
    [Pages 281-283]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on Receiving the World Trade Center Bullhorn and an Exchange
    With Reporters
    February 25, 2002

        The President. Listen, I want to--I want to welcome Bob
    Beckwith to the Oval Office, and his wife,
    Barbara, and his two grandchildren and son
    and daughter who are here, and son-in-law.
        As you may remember, I met Bob on the heap
    of a burnt-out fire engine in New York. And he didn't know and I didn't
    know that we were going to meet on that day. And I had--I was traveling
    there with George Pataki and Rudy
    Giuliani. And it was my chance, after
    the national prayer service, to go to New York City and tell the good
    people of that town, that city, how the Nation stood with them. I had a
    chance to go and see the firefighters and the police officers who had
    been giving every ounce of their energy to rescue their fellow citizens.
    And I was given a bullhorn, and it turned out to be one of those moments
    where I had a chance to speak to the world on behalf of the citizens of
    New York. And Bob was standing there by my
    side.
        I told Bob when he came in, ``You made me
    famous that day.'' But I want to thank you, Bob, for coming back, and I
    want to thank Colonel Wiese as well, who
    rescued the bullhorn and will let me keep the bullhorn for the library.
    There's a father-and-son exhibit that's going to go on at the Bush
    Library, ``Bush 41'' Library, at Texas A&M, and this will be one of the
    key parts of the exhibit. It's an historic--really an historic memento.
    Something we didn't choose, but it's one of those days that I'll never
    forget, and I want to thank you.
        Mr. Beckwith. I'll never forget.
        The President. It was an amazing experience. You know, I didn't
    realize at the time that you and I walked up on
    the heap of a burnt-out fire engine. I didn't realize that--and what's
    interesting, as a result of that, some people in Louisiana saw us
    standing on the fire engine and went and raised money for a new fire
    engine for New York. So that event had a lot of interesting
    ramifications.
        Governor Pataki. Mr. President, since
    September 11th, you've provided incredible leadership and really
    inspired the country. There are many unforgettable moments. But one that
    Bob and I and his family and much of America will never forget was 3
    days after that attack when you came to Ground Zero. And it was exactly
    the right time.
        As Bob can say, everybody was exhausted and worn out, and you didn't
    come for a photo op; you spent hours touring the site and shaking hands
    with the firefighters and the construction workers. And I'll never
    forget the moment when you and Bob stood on that wreck, and the
    President was talking, and one of the construction workers yelled out,
    ``We can't hear you.'' And the President said, ``Well, I can hear you.
    The whole world hears you. And pretty soon those evildoers will be
    hearing from us.''

    [[Page 282]]

        And Mr. President, they have heard from us, and your leadership has
    been inspiring. And this is what you said those words with, and I'm
    proud to present it to you for the Presidential Library. Americans will
    never forget.

    [At this point, Gov. George E. Pataki of
    New York presented the bullhorn to the President.]

        The President. Thank you.

    Daniel Pearl

        Q. Mr. President, are you satisfied with Pakistan's response in the
    Daniel Pearl case? And is the United States interested in pursuing or
    indicting the primary suspect that's now in custody there?
        The President. I am satisfied with the response of President
    Musharraf and the Pakistani Government. I
    got a phone call from him when I was flying back from China, and I could
    tell from the tone of his voice how distraught he was, how disturbed he
    was that this barbaric act had taken place in his country. He knew full
    well that those killers did not represent the vast, vast majority of the
    people in his own country. And he vowed to me on the phone that he would
    do everything in his power to chase down the killers and bring them to
    justice.
        And yes, we're always interested in dealing with people who have
    harmed American citizens.

    Economic Stimulus Package

        Q. Mr. President, what are your thoughts on an economic stimulus
    package now? Do you think there's really an opportunity to work with the
    Democrats in the Senate, particularly given signs that, albeit slowly,
    the economy is beginning to recover?
        The President. Well, I've got to tell you something: It's a matter
    of will and desire. If people put their mind to something, we can get
    things done in Washington, DC. I think we need an economic stimulus
    package. I think it's important for our economy. I think anytime people
    are not working who need to be working, who want to work, we've got to
    do everything we can to make sure the environment is such that they can
    work.
        Secondly, I'm going to talk to the Governors today and remind them
    that in the economic stimulus package was some emergency Medicaid money,
    as well as the national emergency grants, because it's what--emergency
    grant money to help Medicaid bills as well as grants for emergency
    situations to help people with their health care bills.
        And yes, I think we need that bill. And I hope the Senate will take
    it up and pass it.

    Pentagon Office of Strategic Influence

        Q. Sir, have you told Secretary Rumsfeld to get rid of the office of
    disinformation that he's talking about?
        The President. I told Secretary
    Rumsfeld--I didn't even need to tell him this. He knows how I feel; I
    saw it reflected in his comments the other day--that we'll tell the
    American people the truth. And he was just as amazed as I was about
    reading, you know, some allegation that somehow our Government would
    never tell the American people the truth. And I don't--I've got
    confidence, having heard his statement--I heard him this morning talk
    about it--that he'll handle this in the right way.

    Superfund

        Q. There was a report over the weekend, Mr. President, that
    questioned the administration's commitment to the EPA Superfund. Are you
    committed to fully funding the Superfund, sir?
        The President. I'm committed to cleaning up the environment without
    enriching lawyers.
        Q. I'm sorry?
        The President. I think there's too much litigation when it comes to
    environmental cleanup. What I want is action and results. And so we're
    looking at ways to make sure

    [[Page 283]]

    the Superfund fulfills its mission. And you cannot sue your way to clean
    air and clean water and clean land. It's got to be a system that focuses
    on efficient, good ways to make sure we accomplish the mission. And I
    think--so yes, we're looking at ways to reform the system to make sure
    it works, make sure it actually accomplishes what the Congress wants it
    to accomplish.

    Steel Imports and Automobile Industry

        Q. [Inaudible]--and I was wondering if you could tell us if you're
    worried at all that your position on steel would hurt the automakers'
    ability----
        The President. I haven't made a decision yet on steel. I haven't
    made a decision on steel yet. I'm in the process of reviewing all--all
    the facts. But I have made a decision on the need for the use of
    technologies to clean up our air and explore for more energy and change
    the automobile fleet. One of these days, this little lady right here is
    going to be driving an automobile with a hybrid engine in it and a fuel
    cell in it. And it's going to work. And I hope I'm around to see it,
    too.

    World Trade Center Bullhorn

        Q. We thought the bullhorn had been lost. How were you able to find
    it?
        The President. The colonel found it; it's
    the actual one, too.
        Q. It never was lost? It's the real one? It's the actual one?
        The President. Yes.

    Note: The President spoke at 11:30 a.m. in the Oval Office at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to retired New York City firefighter
    Bob Beckwith and his wife, Barbara; former Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani of
    New York City; Col. Daniel Wiese, Assistant Deputy Superintendent, New
    York State Police, and commander, New York State Police Executive
    Services Detail; and President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan. A reporter
    referred to Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl, who was
    kidnaped January 23 in Karachi, Pakistan, and later killed by his
    captors.