    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2005, Book II)]
    [October 24, 2005]
    [Pages 1577-1579]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Cabinet Meeting and an Exchange With Reporters
    October 24, 2005

        The President. Thank the members of my Cabinet for being here. We've
    just had a discussion about a variety of subjects. These men and women
    are showing extraordinary leadership to the American people, and I want
    to thank you for your continued service.

        Secretary Chertoff briefed me and
    briefed the Cabinet about Hurricane Wilma. I also discussed Wilma with
    FEMA Director Paulison as well as the
    Governor of Florida, the State of Florida, Jeb Bush.

        I signed a major disaster declaration today. We have prepositioned
    food, medicine, communications equipment, urban search and rescue teams.
    We will work closely with local and State authorities to respond to this
    hurricane.
        I urge local citizens to listen to the local authorities about
    returning back to your homes. Those folks are on the ground. They know
    what they're talking about, and it's important that you pay attention to
    the messages coming out of people there to help you in Florida. We all
    ask for God's blessings on those who are in harm's way.
        Secondly, we discussed responses to Katrina and Rita. We have a duty
    in the Federal Government to work with State and local authorities to
    help the citizens in Mississippi and Louisiana and Alabama and Texas.
    There's more help to be done, and we need to do so in a fiscally sound

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    way. We can meet our obligations if we set priorities. We can meet our
    obligations if we in Washington show the courage to not fund programs
    that aren't working. I look forward to working with Congress to make
    sure that the taxpayers understand that we can balance compassion with
    fiscal sanity and fiscal responsibility.
        So I want to thank--again, thank the members of the Cabinet. I'll be
    glad to answer a couple of questions.
        Nedra [Nedra Pickler, Associated Press].

    CIA Employee's Identity Disclosure
    Investigation

        Q. Thank you, Mr. President. You said several weeks ago that Special
    Counsel Peter Fitzgerald was handling the CIA leak investigation in a
    very dignified way. Yet some of your Republican supporters have recently
    suggested he may be an overzealous prosecutor or one obsessing over
    legal technicalities. Have you revised your thinking on this issue?
        The President. Nedra, I also said--this may be the fourth time I've
    been asked about this, which I appreciate; you're doing your job--I'm
    not going to comment about it. This is a very serious investigation, and
    I haven't changed my mind about whether or not I'm going to comment on
    it publicly.
        Fine-looking shades you got there.
        Q. Thanks, Mr. President. Bono style. [Laughter]
        The President. Wait a minute. You don't need to be endorsing any
    products here in the Cabinet--[laughter].

    Associate Justice-Designate Harriet E. Miers

        Q. Mr. President, as a newspaper reported on Saturday, is the White
    House working on a contingency plan for the withdrawal of Harriet
    Miers's nomination?
        The President. Harriet Miers is an extraordinary woman. She was a
    legal pioneer in Texas. She was ranked one of the top 50 women lawyers
    in the United States on a consistent basis. She is--look, I understand
    that people want to know more about her, and that's the way the process
    should work.
        Recently, requests, however, have been made by Democrats and
    Republicans about paperwork and--out of this White House that would make
    it impossible for me and other Presidents to be able to make sound
    decisions. In other words, they've asked for paperwork about the
    decisionmaking process, what her recommendations were, and that would
    breach very important confidentiality. And it's a redline I'm not
    willing to cross. People can learn about Harriet Miers through hearings,
    but we are not going to destroy this business about people being able to
    walk into the Oval Office and say, ``Mr. President, here's my advice to
    you. Here's what I think is important.'' And that's not only important
    for this President; it's important for future Presidents.
        Harriet Miers is a fine person, and I expect her to have a good,
    fair hearing on Capitol Hill.
        Thank you all for coming.

    Nomination for Federal Reserve Board Chairman

        Q. [Inaudible]--on a Federal Reserve Chairman, Mr. President?
        The President. Be making an announcement soon.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:45 a.m. in the Cabinet Room at the White
    House. A reporter referred to Patrick J. Fitzgerald, U.S. Attorney for
    the Northern District of Illinois, and Department of Justice CIA leak
    investigation Special Prosecutor; and musician and activist Bono. A
    portion of these remarks could not be verified because the tape was
    incomplete.

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