    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book II)]
    [September 4, 2002]
    [Pages 1523-1525]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Meeting With Congressional Leaders and an Exchange
    With Reporters
    September 4, 2002

        The President. Thank you all for coming. It's been my honor to
    welcome the leadership of the United States Congress here, to welcome
    them back from the August recess. We talked about a variety of issues--
    talked about the defense appropriations bill and terrorism insurance and
    an energy bill, spent most of our time talking about a serious threat to
    the United States, a serious threat to the world, and that's Saddam
    Hussein.
        One of the things I made very clear to the Members here is that
    doing nothing about that serious threat is not an option for the United
    States. I also made it very clear that we look forward to a open dialog
    with Congress and the American people about the threat and that not only
    will we consult with the United States Congress--``we'' being the
    administration--but that my administration will fully participate in any
    hearings that the Congress wishes to have on this subject, on the
    subject about how to make America a more secure country, how to best
    protect the American families in our country. At the appropriate time,
    this administration will go to the Congress to seek approval for--
    necessary to deal with the threat.
        At the same time, I will work with our friends in the world. I've
    invited Prime Minister Blair to come to Camp
    David on Saturday, and he'll--he's coming. I've looked forward to
    talking with him about

    [[Page 1524]]

    our mutual concerns about how to make the world more secure and safe. I
    will see Jean Chretien on Monday, as we--we'll
    talk about how to make our borders work better, but at the same time,
    I'll talk to him about this subject. I'll be on the phone to leaders of
    the--China and Russia and France, and then I'll be giving the speech at
    the United Nations.
        Saddam Hussein is a serious threat. He is
    a significant problem. And it's something that this country must deal
    with. And today the process starts about how to have an open dialog with
    the elected officials and, therefore, the American people about our
    future and how best to deal with it.
        Let me answer a couple of questions. Steve Holland [Reuters],
    Fournier [Ron Fournier, Associated Press], and then Gregory [David
    Gregory, NBC News], and that's it.

    President Saddam Hussein of Iraq

        Q. Mr. President, what's your opinion on putting U.N. weapons
    inspectors back in Iraq? Will you ask the U.N. to do that? Is that a
    viable option?
        The President. First of all, I'll be giving a speech on Tuesday--or
    the 12th--and you can come and listen to it. But let me say to you that
    the issue is not inspectors; the issue is disarmament. This is a
    man who said he would not arm up. This is a
    man who told the world that he would not harbor weapons of mass
    destruction. That's the primary issue, and I'll be discussing ways to
    make sure that that is the case.
        Ron.
        Q. So you will be--you will be discussing ways to make sure that he
    disarms? Are you talking about having inspectors back in?
        The President. I will first remind the United Nations that for 11
    long years, Saddam Hussein has sidestepped,
    crawfished, wheedled out of any agreement he had made not to harbor--not
    to develop weapons of mass destruction, agreements he's made to treat
    the people within his country with respect. And so I'm going to call
    upon the world to recognize that he is stiffing the world. And I will
    lay out and I will talk about ways to make sure that he fulfills his
    obligations.
        Q. Let me just follow up on your opening statement. When you say
    you're going to seek congressional approval, does that mean, in effect,
    Congress will have veto authority over your plan to oust Saddam Hussein?
        The President. I'm confident we will be able to--I'll be able to
    work with Congress to deal with this threat to the American people. And
    that's what I meant.
        Q. Mr. President, you talked about Saddam Hussein stiffing the
    world. In your mind, has the time come to issue the Iraqi leader an
    ultimatum similar to that that you issued to the Taliban?
        The President. I am going to state clearly to the United Nations
    what I think. And I think that he has not fulfilled any of the
    obligations that he made to the world. And I believe it's important for
    the world to deal with this man. And I believe it's really important for
    the United States Congress to have an open dialog about how to deal with
    this threat.
        We are in a new era. The first battle of the--the first war of the
    21st century took place in Afghanistan. The United States is under
    threats. We are--we spent a lot of time, people around this table, good-
    hearted people who care deeply about America spent a lot of time
    thinking about how best to secure our homeland even further. And this is
    a debate the American people must hear, must understand. And the world
    must understand as well that its credibility is at stake.
        Thank you all for coming.
        Q. Are you suggesting an ultimatum is coming? Is a deadline coming,
    sir?

    [[Page 1525]]

    Maxwell Gregory

        The President. That's a fine-looking child, fine-looking child.
    [Laughter] Little Gregory. Little Stretch. [Laughter]
        Thank you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:42 a.m. in the Cabinet Room at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to Prime Minister Tony Blair of the
    United Kingdom; and Prime Minister Jean Chretien of Canada.