[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book I)]
[April 1, 2002]
[Pages 531-533]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
Remarks Following a Meeting With Governor George E. Pataki and Mayor Michael Bloomberg and an Exchange With Reporters
April 1, 2002
Governor's Island Transfer
The President. I have just informed the Governor and the mayor, the
Governor of New York and the mayor of New York City, that the Federal
Government will transfer Governor's Island to the people of New York.
I'll never forget choppering over Governor's Island with George and Rudy
Giuliani, Mike Bloomberg's predecessor,
and the two leaders talking about what good use Governor's Island could
be put to.
Since that time, I've studied the statements of Mayor Bloomberg, who
extensively talked about Governor's Island and how to improve Governor's
Island and how to make it a center of educational excellence, something
dear to George Pataki's heart. I looked at the law, looked at the
circumstances, and decided this morning that this was the right thing
for the U.S. Government, and it's the right thing for the people of New
York.
I appreciate so very much the vision of these two leaders, and I
appreciate their heartfelt concern for the citizens of New York City and
the region. And so I want to welcome to the Oval Office with this piece
of news.
George, why don't you say a few words?
[At this point, Governor Pataki and Mayor Bloomberg made brief remarks.]
The President. I know you will. Thanks.
I'll be glad to answer a few questions.
Chairman Yasser Arafat of the Palestinian
Authority
Q. Mr. President, what specifically would you like for Chairman
Arafat to do, what specific action you'd like him to take in the Middle
East? And in light of the current situation in Israel, does the Bush
doctrine on terrorism not apply in this case?
The President. Well, first of all, there will never be peace so long
as there's terror. And all of us must fight off--fight terror. And you
asked about Chairman Arafat. I'd like to see Chairman Arafat denounce
the terrorist activities that are taking place, the constant attacks.
We've got a plan that will lead to peace, the security plan called
Tenet; there's a political plan called Mitchell. Both sides have agreed
to this plan, and we urge the parties to accept the Tenet plan so that
we can bring some--a peaceful resolution to an issue that's affecting
the lives of Palestinians and Israelis alike. There's a lot of innocent
people who hurt in the region because of the senseless violence and
senseless murder.
Q. Mr. President, I'd like to follow up on Sonya's [Sonya Ross,
Associated Press] question. Under your doctrine, a terrorist or someone
who aids a terrorist is the equivalent of a terrorist. So what's keeping
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Chairman Arafat--what's keeping you from labeling Chairman Arafat a
terrorist?
The President. Chairman Arafat has agreed to a peace process. He's
agreed to the Tenet plan. He's agreed to the Mitchell plan. He has
negotiated with parties as to how to achieve peace. And of course, our
hope is that he accepts the Tenet plan. That's what General Zinni is in the Middle East doing, working to get this
Tenet agreement in place, which is a series of concrete steps to reduce
the violence in the Middle East.
President's Involvement in Middle East
Q. There were various calls on the Sunday talk shows for you to
become more actively involved in this process, sir. Is there any way you
would do that?
The President. You know, they must have not been with me in Crawford
when I was on the phone all morning long, talking to world leaders.
We've just come from a National Security Council meeting where Colin
Powell was recounting his phone
conversations. We've got General Zinni in the
region. We've got a Tenet plan, a Mitchell plan, a roadmap to what will
be a peaceful resolution to this issue.
I hope that the world community will continue to condemn terror, and
if they haven't condemned terror yet, start condemning terror. It's
essential for the peace of the region and the world that we rout out
terrorist activities, that we condemn those activities. Suicide bombers
in the name of religion is simple terror. And the free world, the
civilized world must band together to stop this kind of activity if we
expect there to be peace and resolution in the Middle East.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel
Q. You've made clear, sir, that you believe that Chairman Arafat
needs to do much more. Do you believe that Prime Minister Sharon is
doing all he can to foster peace in the region?
The President. I think it's very important for the Prime Minister to
keep a pathway to peace open, to understand that on the one hand, Israel
should protect herself, and on the other hand, there ought to be a
pathway, the capacity to achieve a peaceful resolution to this issue.
It's important for Israel to understand that. They've signed on to the
Tenet agreement, and they signed on to the Mitchell plan, and that is
the pathway to peace. And I believe Prime Minister Sharon still accepts
Tenet and still accepts Mitchell as the way to achieve a peaceful
resolution.
I was very heartened a couple of weeks ago by the Saudi Arabia Crown
Prince, when he talked about the need
for the Arab world to recognize Israel's right to exist. It was a
positive development. There were some positive things that were taking
place in the region, until the terrorist suicide bombers start killing
innocent people.
Governor's Island Transfer
Q. Mr. President, why give the island now? Can you tell us what----
The President. Why now, right this second?
Q. Well, why did you make the announcement today, and what persuaded
you to transfer the island to the city? And also, was this in any way to
help Governor Pataki in his reelection?
The President. Well, listen, he doesn't need my help to get
reelected, for starters. He's got a great record. The people of New York
are discerning voters. Well, most of the time they're discerning
voters--[laughter]--if you know what I mean. [Laughter]
Q. No, what do you mean? [Laughter]
The President. Well, you're a smart guy; read between the lines. No,
George Pataki has been a great Governor for New York. I made the
announcement today because I had finished the necessary study of the
issue, to make sure that we could transfer this property without
congressional action. And I believe I can do that. It took a while to
take a look at it.
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It also requires--I wanted to make sure that the Governor and mayor
would be using this property for education purposes. That's what the
mayor said he would do; the Governor said he wanted to do that. They
took a look at it and decided this is what they wanted to do. And it
makes a lot of sense to me, and using it for education purposes will
make it easier for me to facilitate the transfer, by the way.
Q. Mr. President, the previous administration didn't want--I was
just wondering, what specifically persuaded you?
The President. Well, I took a look at it. I mean, it's a good
question. I took a look at it. I listened to what George said. He's my
friend; I trust his judgment. I've known him for a long time, and Rudy
Giuliani as well--both of them were
passionate in their appeal for us to consider transferring Governor's
Island. And I knew Mike was very interested in enhancing the quality of
education in New York City.
And I took a look at it. I came back--obviously, things didn't
happen quickly after September the 15th trip, because we had a lot on
our mind. But it took a while to work it through the White House staff,
and it arrived on my desk sometime last week. And the recommendation was
that we could transfer this property, if that's what I wanted to do. And
it's something I want to do, because I think it's going to make the life
of a city that has been tragically affected by killers and murderers
better. And I think it will enhance the quality of education for the
people of New York. And to me, that is a worthwhile and noble cause.
Note: The President spoke at 11:15 a.m. in the Oval Office at the White
House. In his remarks, the President referred to U.S. Special Envoy to
the Middle East Gen. Anthony Zinni, USMC (Ret.); and Crown Prince
Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. The President also referred to the Tenet plan,
the Israeli-Palestinian cease-fire and security plan of June 13, 2001,
negotiated by Director of Central Intelligence George J. Tenet; and the
Mitchell report, the Report of the Sharm el-Sheikh Fact-Finding
Committee, issued April 30, 2001. The transcript released by the Office
of the Press Secretary also included the remarks of Governor Pataki and
Mayor Bloomberg. A tape was not available for verification of the
content of these remarks.