[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book II)]
[July 22, 2002]
[Pages 1275-1277]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
Exchange With Reporters in Argonne, Illinois
July 22, 2002
Stock Market
Q. A lot of people are losing their life savings in the market.
What's your advice to them, pull out? Stay in? Put more money in?
The President. Well, I'm not a stockbroker or a stockpicker, but I
do believe that the fundamentals for economic growth are real. And I
believe Congress is going to get a bill that will help to take some of
the uncertainty out of the market, and that bill is going to put some
meaningful reforms in place.
And then, the investor is going to pick value, make decisions on
value. And from what I hear, corporate profits are improving, which
means values will be available for those who invest in the market.
Secondly, I fully understand some have diversified into bonds. And
for those who have, their portfolios are better than those who have
stayed only in equity. But I'm an optimist. I believe the future's going
to be bright.
But look, you're talking to the wrong guy about what stocks to buy.
[[Page 1276]]
WorldCom
Q. Do you believe the country will feel the effects of today's
WorldCom bankruptcy? Does that worry you?
The President. I think the market probably has already adjusted for
that. What I'm worried about on the WorldCom bankruptcy is the employees
that work for WorldCom. I worry that people will lose work. But the
market has already, I suspect, has already anticipated the WorldCom
decision.
The key is for Congress to get a bill. I talked with the
Speaker about it today. He's optimistic
that we will get a good bill. And I meant what I said, I'd like to see
the bill on my desk prior to the recess.
Department of Homeland Security Legislation
Q. Mr. President, is the September 11th deadline for getting
homeland security bill through, is that--some are saying--is it
realistic?
The President. Well, I think they made great progress. I know they
made great progress in the House. And the Senate is going to take it up
in the next 2 weeks. And I believe there's a good chance we can get----
Q. But would you rather--if it came to it, would you rather wait and
make sure it was done right, or does it have to be done----
The President. Well, you're suggesting it's not being done right now
in the House, and I'm sure those Members will----
Q. You never know what's going to happen in that Senate, sir--
[laughter].
The President. I'm sure the Speaker
appreciates that. But I do believe it's going to be done right. We're
working closely with the Members. Hopefully, we can get it done by
September the 11th. The key is to get it done.
Trade Promotion Authority Legislation
Q. Are you going to get trade promotion authority this week?
The President. Well, that's a good question. I talked to the
Speaker about that. I'm anxious that they
come together and get a bill up. It's important for our economy that we
get a trade promotion authority. I know the Speaker's committed to
getting a bill to the floor, once the conference finishes its work.
I met with the leaders of both the House and the Senate, both
parties, and urged them to reconcile any differences and get the bill to
the floor of the House before they go on recess. We'll just have to see.
When I get back to Washington, I'm going to check in, because our people
are working that bill hard, working the corporate responsibility bill
hard as well.
Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill
Q. Mr. President, what do you say to the folks, the growing number
of folks who are calling for Treasury Secretary O'Neill to step down?
The President. I say he's doing a fine job. And when the market goes
up, I hope they will give him credit. If they're going to hold him
accountable for a market going down, they ought to give him credit when
the market goes up.
But I have all the confidence in the world in Secretary of the
Treasury O'Neill. And I understand one newspaper was calling for his
scalp, but you know, that's Washington, DC. That's what happens in that
town.
Stock Market
Q. Mr. President, in that regard, after such a terrible week on the
stock market last week, what's it going to take for investors to have
the confidence to make that market go up again?
The President. Value. They're going to realize that there's values
in the market. In other words, if they buy stock, they're buying value,
as opposed to buying, you know, buying into a bubble.
And one of the things we can do in Washington is get a corporate
responsibility
[[Page 1277]]
bill passed, and I'm confident we will, which will take some of the risk
out of the market. And the risk is that people won't be held accountable
for misdeeds.
But people will be buying--buying in the market based upon the
value. And what's happening is, corporate earnings are improving, so
that the price/earnings ratios are improving. And I believe people are
going to come back into the market. But listen, I'm not a stockbroker.
I'm not a stockpicker. My attitude on Wall Street is, they'll buy you or
sell you, depending upon if it's in their interest.
And you know, when I was--when I used to watch the stocks, I was in
Midland, Texas, somewhat skeptical about what was taking place on the
floors of these exchanges. But I know--I always knew--that you needed to
buy on value, that the price relative to the earnings of the company
needed to be in line with what they considered value. And I believe the
values are improving. I know the economics, the platform for growth is
in good shape. Inflation is low. Monetary policy is sound. Fiscal policy
is sound. Productivity is up. Orders for durable goods are up. We've got
the platform for growth.
When the values get there, you'll see the market go back up.
Thank you.
What?
2002 Election
Q. Any concerns about the Republican Party here in Illinois? There's
been a lot of----
The President. No, we're going to win the Governor's race.
Note: The exchange began at 10:15 a.m. during a tour of the Advanced
Photon Source Lab at the Argonne National Laboratory.