[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book II)]
[August 23, 2004]
[Pages 1729-1733]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



The President's News Conference in Crawford, Texas
August 23, 2004

    The President. Mr. Secretary, thank 
you for coming. General Myers, Vice 
President, and Condi and I just had a long-ranging discussion with our 
key members of the defense team about a variety of subjects. We talked 
about Iraq, the way forward in Iraq, the way to help the Iraqis get to 
elections. We're making progress on the ground. We were briefed not only 
by the Secretary and General Myers but as well

[[Page 1730]]

by General Casey and General 
Abizaid via secure communications.
    We talked about transformation issues. We spent some time talking 
about the reconfiguration of our forces around the world, to better be 
able to keep the peace. And Mr. Secretary, I thank you for your leadership on that issue. The 
Secretary did a great job of not only coming up with a strategy to 
enable America to better protect ourselves and friends and allies 
against the true threats of the 21st century, but he consulted with our 
allies in such a way that the response was very positive and I thought 
very good.
    We talked about intelligence reform. We just talked about a variety 
of issues that are important for the security of the country. And I 
appreciate you coming, sir. Thank you for being here.
    I'll answer some questions. Deb [Deb Riechmann, Associated Press].

2004 Election

    Q. Some of your supporters are refighting the Vietnam war with their 
comments about Kerry's war record. Do you think that these attacks of 
this nature are unpatriotic, un-American, seeing as we're sending young 
people to war at this time?
    The President. Yes. I think we ought to be debating who best to be 
leading this country in the war against terror. And that's what I'll 
continue to try to convince the American people of, is that I'm the 
right person to continue to lead the country in the war on terror. I 
think we ought to be looking forward, not backward. And that's the kind 
of campaign I'll continue to run.

Swift Boat Veterans for Truth Ad/527 Campaign Ads

    Q. But why won't you denounce the charges that your supporters are 
making against Kerry?
    The President. I'm denouncing all the stuff being on TV of the 527s. 
That's what I've said. I said this kind of unregulated soft money is 
wrong for the process. And I asked Senator Kerry 
to join me in getting rid of all that kind of soft money, not only on TV 
but used for other purposes as well. I frankly thought we'd gotten rid 
of that when I signed the McCain-Feingold bill. I thought we were going 
to, once and for all, get rid of a system where people could just pour 
tons of money in and not be held to account for the advertising. And so 
I'm disappointed with all those kinds of ads.
    Yes, Adam [Adam Entous, Reuters].

John Kerry's Military Service/Leadership

    Q. Thank you, Mr. President. This doesn't have anything to do with 
other 527 ads. You've been accused of mounting a smear campaign. Do you 
think Senator Kerry lied about his war record?
    The President. I think Senator Kerry served admirably, and he ought 
to be proud of his record. But the question is, who best to lead the 
country in the war on terror, who can handle the responsibilities of the 
Commander in Chief, who's got a clear vision of the risks that the 
country faces.
    Yes.

527 Campaign Ads

    Q. Mr. President, some Republicans such as Bob Dole and some 
Republican donors such as----
    The President. What paper are you with?
    Q. I'm with Bloomberg.
    The President. Okay, good. First time I've seen you out here. 
Welcome.
    Q. Thank you.
    The President. No problem. Did you write the story about the Vice 
President? [Laughter] Yes, go ahead.
    Q. That's okay. Some Republicans such as Bob Dole and some 
Republican donors such as Bob Perry have contributed and endorsed the 
message of these 527 Swift Boat Veterans for Truth ads----
    The President. Right.
    Q. Do you--when you say that you want to stop all----

[[Page 1731]]

    The President. All of them.
    Q. Does that mean----
    The President. That means that ad, every other ad.
    Q. Would you encourage Republicans not to give to----
    The President. Absolutely. I don't think we ought to have 527s. I 
can't be more plain about it. And I wish--I hope my opponent joins me in 
saying--condemning these activities of the 527s. It's the--I think 
they're bad for the system. That's why I signed the bill, McCain-
Feingold. I've been disappointed that for the first 6 months of this 
year, 527s were just pouring tons of money, billionaires writing checks. 
And I spoke out against them early. I tried to get others to speak out 
against them as well. And I just don't--I think they're bad for the 
system.
    Yes, Robert [G. Robert Hillman, Dallas Morning News].

Oil Prices

    Q. Sir, on the price of oil, it's at or near record levels. Other 
than pushing for your energy proposals, which we know about, what else 
are you doing to try to mitigate the price of oil?
    The President. That's the best thing, is to come up with a 
comprehensive energy strategy that encourages conservation, encourages 
environmentally sensitive exploration for natural resources in our own 
hemisphere. It talks about, of course, dealing with new forms of energy. 
And admittedly, those aren't going to come on market in time to deal 
with the current price of oil----
    Q. Did you talk to President Putin about it this morning?
    The President. Yes, I talked to him about 
it.
    Q. What did he say?
    The President. He said he recognizes that 
we don't need to be--he doesn't need to be causing conditions such that 
it hurts consuming nations. He's wise about that. But we've got a lot of 
countries beginning to use more energy, and we haven't done a good job 
of increasing supply.
    Q. Just one more thing along that line. Are you concerned that the 
price of energy could become a campaign issue here of larger proportions 
than it already is?
    The President. I think the people know that we have--this 
administration has been asking for Congress to pass a comprehensive 
energy plan for over 2 years. We recognized this problem 2 years ago and 
spoke out clearly and urged the Members of Congress to pass a bill, and 
it's stuck. So people know we've been proactive on the issue.
    Last question. Yes. Hold on. Yes, Mark [Mark Knoller, CBS Radio].

Republican National Convention

    Q. Thank you. Sir, how is work coming----
    The President. You've got your earphones on so you're speaking very 
loudly. [Laughter]
    Q. Sorry, didn't mean to do that. How is work coming on your 
convention speech? What should we expect from it? And are you worried 
about violent protests at the convention?
    The President. Let's see. You know, I--people are allowed to express 
themselves in democracies, and hopefully they'll do so in a peaceful 
way.
    In terms of the speech, I'm working on it. But I don't want to give 
you any tidbits----
    Q. Just a little bit.
    The President. I don't want to give you any tidbits, for fear that 
you may not pay attention when I actually stand up there and deliver it. 
[Laughter]
    Q. Oh, he'll pay attention.
    The President. You think he will? [Laughter] I'm looking forward to 
giving it. I want to talk about what I intend to do. We've got a great 
record, when you think about it: led the world in the war on terror; the 
world is safer as a result of the actions we've taken; Afghanistan is no 
longer run by the Taliban; Saddam

[[Page 1732]]

Hussein sits in a prison cell; Muammar 
Qadhafi has gotten rid of 
his weapons; Pakistan is an ally in the war on terror. There's more work 
to be done in fighting off these terrorists. I clearly see that. I 
understand that we've got to use all resources at our disposal to find 
and bring these people to justice.
    When you think about domestic politics, we've faced a recession, had 
tax cuts that encouraged economic growth and vitality. We've helped 
reform a education system with the No Child Left Behind Act. We've 
reformed Medicare, first administration ever to get Congress to move 
forward on Medicare reform. We got trade promotion authority; it opened 
up more markets for U.S. entrepreneurs and farmers and manufacturers.
    We've had a great record. But the only reason to even talk about the 
record is to say, ``Give us a chance to move the country forward. We're 
people who can get the job done. We've proven to you we can get the job 
done, and there's more work to be done.'' And I'll talk about that in 
the convention. In other words, it's going to be a forward-looking 
speech.
    Last question. I know you all are hungry.

Legislation To Restructure the Intelligence Community

    Q. Absolutely. Mr. President, thank you. Intelligence Committee 
Chairman Pat Roberts has proposed a bill to radically restructure the 
intelligence community. He splits up the CIA, gives complete budgetary 
authority to the new NID, as well as personnel hiring and firing 
authority, and more--takes a number of intelligence collection agencies 
out of the Pentagon and transmits them over to the NID. I wonder what 
you think of that proposal, and what is the status of the White House 
effort on this front?
    The President. I haven't seen it. I haven't seen his proposal. 
He was on TV yesterday morning talking about his 
ideas, and I'm sure he's going to send it over to us to take a look at 
it.
    There is a lot of ideas moving around. And we've got a lot of smart 
people looking at the best way to fashion intelligence so that the 
President and his Cabinet Secretaries have got the ability to make good 
judgment calls on behalf of the American people. That's what I'm 
interested in. I'm interested in how to get the best intelligence to my 
desk so I can be a good decisionmaker on behalf of the people of this 
country. And intelligence is a vital part of winning this war against 
these terrorists. We've got to know who they are, what they're thinking, 
where they are. And so that's how we're approaching this issue.
    Now, listen, I've called for a National Intelligence Director 
because I think it's an important part of coordinating activities to 
make sure the analysis of information is as good as it can possibly be. 
I am not for anything standing in between me and my line operators like 
the Secretary of Defense. In other words, 
once intelligence is in place and once we come up with a decision as to 
how to act, I want to make sure the person responsible for the actions 
has a direct report to me.
    And so we're looking at all options, including the budget option, 
all aimed at making sure that me and future Presidents have got the best 
information possible. And so Senator Roberts is 
a good, thoughtful guy. He came up with an idea, and we'll look at it. 
We'll take a look at it and determine whether or not it works or not. 
But there's going to be a lot of other ideas too as this debate goes 
forward.
    Listen, thank you all.

Summer Olympics

    Q. You're not going to Athens this week, are you?
    The President. Athens, Texas? [Laughter]
    Q. The Olympics, Greece.
    The President. Oh, the Olympics. No, I'm not.
    Q. Have you been watching them?

[[Page 1733]]

    The President. Oh, yes. Yes, it's been exciting.
    Q. Any particular moment stand out?
    The President. Particular moment? I like the--let's see--Iraqi 
soccer. I liked seeing the Afghan woman carrying the flag, coming in. I 
loved our gymnasts. I've been watching the swimming. I've seen a lot, 
yes.
    Listen, thank you all. Enjoy yourself.

Note: The President's news conference began at 12:05 p.m. at the Bush 
Ranch. In his remarks, he referred to Secretary of Defense Donald H. 
Rumsfeld; Gen. George W. Casey, Jr., USA, commanding general, Multi-
National Force--Iraq; President Vladimir Putin of Russia; former 
President Saddam Hussein of Iraq; and Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-
Qadhafi, leader of Libya. He also referred to organizations described in 
Section 527 of the Tax Code. A reporter referred to former Senator Bob 
Dole; and Bob J. Perry, chief executive officer, Perry Homes, a Joint 
Venture.