    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2003, Book I)]
    [January 21, 2003]
    [Pages 69-71]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Meeting With Economists and an Exchange With
    Reporters
    January 21, 2003

        The President. Let me make a couple comments about the meeting we
    just had and be glad to answer a couple questions. You can lead it off,
    Fournier [Ron Fournier, Associated Press], in a minute.

    [[Page 70]]

        I want to thank some of our Nation's leading economists for coming
    today to share their thoughts with me about our economy and the strength
    of our Nation, how best to make sure people can find work.
        We had a great discussion about the plan that I laid out for the
    Congress to consider and to enact, a plan which focuses on job creation,
    a plan which recognizes that money in the consumers' pocket will help
    grow this economy, a plan that recognizes there are some long-term
    things we can do to make sure the investor feels comfortable taking
    risks in America. It is a plan that recognizes that economic growth is
    not as strong as it should be. It's a plan that's good for all
    Americans. It is a plan that addresses our needs, and it's a plan that
    Congress needs to pass.
        These economists can speak for themselves after they leave, but they
    have given good advice and sound judgment, and for that, I'm grateful.
        I'll take a couple of questions. Ron.

     Diversity in Higher Education

        Q. Sir, last week in this room, you came out against quotas, which
    have been unconstitutional for 25 years. You didn't answer the central
    question, and that is whether race can be used as a factor in
    admissions. Dr. Rice says it could be. Colin Powell says it should be.
    What is your position? Can it be used as----
        The President. Well, my position is, is that as the--as the brief
    says, that there are clearly unconstitutional means to achieve
    diversity, there are race-neutral ways to achieve diversity--which I
    have put in place as the Governor of Texas--and that we'll leave the
    Court to define the outer limits of the Constitution.
        Adam [Adam Entous, Reuters].
        Q. Yes, Mr. President----
        Q. You won't answer that question then?
        The President. I just answered it.
        Q. Whether or not you believe----
        The President. No, I answered it. The courts will make the
    definition of the outer limits of the--and as Condi Rice said, she felt very comfortable in saying on
    national TV the decision I made was the right decision.
        Adam.

    Iraq

        Q. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. President. The French are saying they
    would block a U.N. resolution authorizing force on Iraq. Are you
    frustrated by these comments? Can you still reach a consensus?
        The President. Well, Adam, first of all, it's important for the
    American citizens and the citizens around the world to understand that
    Saddam Hussein possesses some of the world's
    deadliest weapons. He poses a serious threat to America and our friends
    and allies. The world came together, including the French, to say he
    must disarm. He's not disarming. As a matter of fact, it appears to be a
    rerun of a bad movie. He is delaying. He is deceiving. He is asking for
    time. He's playing hide-and-seek with inspectors.
        One thing is for certain, he's not disarming. So the United States
    of America, in the name of peace, will continue to insist he does
    disarm, and we will keep the pressure on Saddam Hussein.
        Angle [Jim Angle, FOX News].
        Q. Mr. President, when do you intend to make a decision about
    whether or not the inspection process is--actually has any hope of
    really disarming Saddam?
        The President. It's clear to me now that he is not disarming. And surely, our friends have learned
    lessons from the past. Surely we have learned how this man deceives and
    delays. He's giving people the runaround. And as many of my advisers
    said on TV this week, time is running out. I believe in the name of
    peace, he must disarm. And we will lead a coalition of willing nations
    to disarm him. Make no mistake about that, he will be disarmed.

    [[Page 71]]

        Q. When--how do you decide when that moment comes that you need to
    make a judgment?
        The President. I will let you know when the moment has come.
    [Laughter]
        Q. Mr. President, who is in that coalition of the willing now? Are
    France, Germany out?
        The President. You will find out who is in the coalition of the
    willing. It is very much like what happened prior to our getting a
    resolution out of the United Nations. Many of the punditry--of course,
    not you--[laughter]--but other punditry were quick to say, ``No one is
    going to follow the United States of America.'' And we got a unanimous
    resolution out of the United Nations.
        The United States has made it clear our intention, and our intention
    is to work with the world for Saddam to
    disarm. He's been given ample time to disarm. We have had ample time now
    to see that the tricks of the past--he's employing the tricks of the
    past today. He's giving people the runaround. He wants to play hide-and-
    seek. He's got a vast country.
        He wants to focus the attention of the
    world on inspectors. This is not about inspectors; this is about a
    disarmed Iraq. He has weapons of mass destruction, the world's deadliest
    weapons, which pose a direct threat to the United States, our citizens,
    and our friends and allies. He has been told to disarm for 11 long
    years. He's not disarming.
        This business about, you know, more time--you know, how much time do
    we need to see clearly that he's not
    disarming? As I said, this looks like a rerun of a bad movie, and I'm
    not interested in watching it.
        All right, thank you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:35 a.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the
    White House. In his remarks, he referred to President Saddam Hussein of
    Iraq. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language
    transcript of these remarks. A portion of these remarks could not be
    verified because the tape was incomplete.