[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 37, Number 48 (Monday, December 3, 2001)]
[Pages 1711-1714]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a Welcoming Ceremony for Humanitarian Aid Workers Rescued 
From Afghanistan and an Exchange With Reporters

November 26, 2001

    The President. Good morning. I'm so honored to welcome two 
courageous souls to the Rose Garden to celebrate a story of joy and a 
story of hope, a story of two women who were rescued, a story about the 
faith that sustained them and a family that clearly loves them.
    Heather Mercer and Dayna Curry decided to go to help people who 
needed help. Their faith led them to Afghanistan. One woman who knows 
them best put it this way: They had a calling to serve the poorest of 
the poor, and Afghanistan is where that calling took them.
    And Heather and Dayna's faith in God sustained them throughout their 
ordeal. It's a wonderful story about prayer, about a faith that can 
sustain people in good times and in bad times. Their faith was a source 
of hope that kept them from becoming discouraged.
    I talked to them right after their release, their freedom, and I 
sensed no bitterness in their voice, no fatigue, just joy. It was an 
uplifting experience for me to talk to these courageous souls.
    Theirs is also a story about people who--in our country--who rallied 
for them. People prayed all around the country. I was particularly 
struck by the fact that Heather's dad offered to take her place in 
prison. I was struck by the fact that a country preacher out of central 
Texas flew to Afghanistan to lend his presence in any way that would 
help. I know there are a lot of people right outside of Crawford that 
were praying for these girls' release. And when they were, people all 
across Baylor University cheered. Something besides football became more 
important in their lives: life, itself.
    This is a story of a military that is committed to achieving certain 
objectives. In my speech in front of the United States Congress, I said 
to the Taliban that one of the objectives was to release the 
humanitarian aid workers that were being detained against their will. 
We've achieved that objective. And I want to thank our military for 
rescuing these girls. And I want to thank those on the ground in 
Afghanistan who helped with their rescue, as well.
    So it's a joyous day to welcome two good souls to the Rose Garden. 
I'll ask them to say a few comments, and then I'll be glad to answer 
some questions, if you have any.

[At this point, Heather Mercer and Dayna Curry made brief remarks.]

    The President. Good job.

Operation Enduring Freedom

    Q. Mr. President, following up on the talk of the military's role in 
rescuing these two ladies, can you tell us why you have deployed 1,000 
marines, at least 1,000 marines this weekend on the ground, what their 
mission is? How many more are coming? And how much more risky has their 
mission become with this advancement of the troops?
    The President. Well, first, I'll let the Defense Department explain 
the mission. Well, first of all, we know the mission. The mission is to 
bring Al Qaida to justice and to make sure Afghanistan no longer serves 
as a haven for terrorists. And we've got a military strategy that we're 
implementing. I'll let the Secretary of Defense, in his daily briefing, 
go into the operational details as he sees fit.
    But this is a dangerous period of time. This is a period of time in 
which we're now hunting down the people who are responsible for bombing 
America. I said a long time ago, one of our objectives is to smoke them 
out and get them running and to bring them to justice. We're smoking 
them out; they're running; and now we're going to bring them to justice. 
I also said we'll use whatever means is necessary to achieve that 
objective. And that's exactly what we're going to do.
    The American people must understand that we've got a long way to go 
in order to achieve our objective in this theater. But we're patient; 
we're resolved; and we will stay the course until we achieve our 
objective.

National Economy

    Q. Mr. President, what's your reaction, sir, to news that the U.S. 
economy has been in a recession since March?
    The President. My reaction that--since March? Well, I knew that the 
economy was

[[Page 1712]]

not in good shape right after I took office; that's why I urged that we 
pass a tax relief plan. I remember the debate clearly, about people 
saying, well, the economy is strong. But it wasn't. It was flagging; it 
was weakening.
    And that tax relief plan is going to be part of an economic recovery 
package that will make sense for the long term of the country. We've got 
low interest rates. We've got reasonable energy prices. We've got good 
tax policy in place. We've got the framework for economic recovery. I 
hope Congress moves quickly on an economic stimulus package. The Senate 
needs to get a bill and get it into conference, so we can resolve 
differences and I can sign it before Christmas. But I am, obviously, 
aware that our economy is slow. And we will do everything we can to 
enhance recovery.

Operation Enduring Freedom

    Q. Mr. President, getting back to the earlier question, aside from 
September 11th, which cannot be forgotten, the war on terrorism has been 
truly relatively American-casualty free. And in recent years, Americans 
have been generally casualty-averse in its military operations.
    Are you concerned that Americans may suddenly start getting back 
into that pattern where they're less accepting of American casualties?
    The President. Well, first of all, obviously, no President or 
Commander in Chief hopes anybody loses life in the theater. But it's 
going to happen. I said this early on, as the campaign began: America 
must be prepared for loss of life. I believe the American people 
understand that we've got a mighty struggle on our hands and that there 
will be sacrifice. After all, some people made the greatest sacrifice 
possible on September the 11th, and that is those who took the airplane 
down. They said the Lord's Prayer on the phone to their loved ones; the 
loved ones heard, ``Let's roll''; and they took a plane down so that it 
might not kill others, such as people working in the White House or at 
the Capitol.
    No, I think the American people understand we're in for a long, long 
struggle in order to rid the world of terrorism and that there might be 
loss of life. I pray that not be the case. But our brave men and women 
who signed up for the military understand the risk inherent with being 
in the military.
    Major [Major Garrett, Cable News Network].
    Q. Mr. President, at Fort Campbell, you said, ``Across the world and 
across the years, we will fight the evil ones, and we will win''----
    The President. Yes.

Future Counterterrorism Efforts

    Q. ----suggesting very strongly that Afghanistan is only the first 
step. What would you say about Iraq, as you begin to look at the next 
steps in the campaign against global terrorism? What message would you 
like to send to them now?
    The President. Well, my message is, is that if you harbor a 
terrorist, you're a terrorist. If you feed a terrorist, you're a 
terrorist. If you develop weapons of mass destruction that you want to 
terrorize the world, you'll be held accountable. And I also have said, 
as I recall, at the White House, we're going to make sure that we 
accomplish each mission that we tackle. First things first.
    Now having said that, we--the coalition has arrested over 300 
people. I can't wait to thank my friend President Aznar of Spain for 
having arrested eight terrorists in Spain. In other words, there is an 
international drag--international effort to bring people to justice. And 
over 300 people that have been involved with Al Qaida have been brought 
to justice. Terrorism is terrorism. In this country, we'll deal with it.
    Bill [Bill Plante, CBS News].
    Q. Sir, you mentioned President Aznar of Spain. Spain says that they 
don't want to extradite those people unless they can be tried under our 
standard court system and not by a military tribunal. Are you concerned 
with the amount of dissent over your decision to establish military 
tribunals?
    The President. Not the least bit concerned. I made the right 
decision. A President must have the option of using a military tribunal 
in times of war. I look forward to explaining to my friend the President 
of Spain why I made that decision. It makes eminent sense to have the 
military tribunal

[[Page 1713]]

option available. It makes sense for national security purposes. It 
makes sense for the protection of potential jurors. It makes sense for 
homeland security. It is the right decision to make, and I will explain 
that to any leader who asks.
    Terry [Terry Moran, ABC News].

Human Cloning

    Q. Mr. President, it seems an important line has been crossed with 
the attempt to clone a human being by a private laboratory. What's your 
reaction to that? Do you think there's any way to put this genie back in 
the bottle?
    The President. My reaction, Terry, is that the use of embryos to 
clone is wrong. We should not, as a society, grow life to destroy it. 
And that's exactly what's taking place. And I have made that position 
very clear. I haven't changed my mind. And this evidence today that 
they're trying to achieve that objective, to grow an embryo in order to 
extract a stem cell, in order for that embryo to die, is bad public 
policy. Not only that, it's morally wrong, in my opinion.
    Yes.

The Vice President

    Q. Mr. President, does the current threat justify the Vice President 
remaining in an undisclosed location? And even though he's not----
    The President. I just ate breakfast with him. It's no longer 
undisclosed. [Laughter] And he looks great. I think my adjective was 
``swell.'' He still looks swell.
    Q. How long is this separation going to go on? Do you think that----
    The President. I had breakfast with him. I mean, I shouldn't say 
that. Right after I had breakfast, I met with him. I spent the morning 
with him. As a matter of fact, he was here to welcome these families 
into the White House.
    Q. But do you still consider him, even though he's not as visible 
and doesn't, in terms of visibility, appear to be playing the same kind 
of role we saw before September 11th----
    The President. No, the Vice President is very much engaged in the 
administration, and I value his advice. I trust his judgment. I talk to 
him every single day. And today I was visiting with him face to face. As 
I say, he looks swell.
    Stretch. [Richard Keil, Bloomberg News].

Iraq

    Q. To follow up on Major's question.
    The President. What was his question?
    Q. Whether Iraq could be the next target of the antiterror campaign.
    The President. Oh, okay.
    Q. Does Saddam Hussein have to agree to allow weapons inspectors 
back into Iraq? Is that an unconditional demand of yours?
    The President. Saddam Hussein agreed to allow inspectors in his 
country. And in order to prove to the world he's not developing weapons 
of mass destruction, he ought to let the inspectors back in.
    Yes.
    Q. And if he does not do that, sir, what will be the consequence? If 
he does not do that, what will be the consequences?
    The President. That's up for--he'll find out.
    Q. Sir, what is your thinking right now about taking the war to 
Iraq? You suggested that on Wednesday, when you said Afghanistan was 
just the beginning.
    The President. I stand by those words. Afghanistan is still just the 
beginning. If anybody harbors a terrorist, they're a terrorist. If they 
fund a terrorist, they're a terrorist. If they house terrorists, they're 
terrorists. I mean, I can't make it any more clearly to other nations 
around the world. If they develop weapons of mass destruction that will 
be used to terrorize nations, they will be held accountable. And as for 
Mr. Saddam Hussein, he needs to let inspectors back in his country to 
show us that he is not developing weapons of mass destruction.
    Yes, David [David Gregory, NBC News].

Weapons of Mass Destruction

    Q. Mr. President, following up on that thought, when you initially 
made--defined terrorism in your speech before Congress, you did not 
include the weapons of mass destruction. Are you now extending this to 
countries like North Korea, other places where we have had evidence over 
the years

[[Page 1714]]

that there's been development of such weapons?
    The President. Well, clearly, in terms of North Korea, we want North 
Korea to allow inspectors in, to determine whether or not they are. 
We've had that discussion with North Korea. I made it very clear to 
North Korea that in order for us to have relations with them, that we 
want to know, are they developing weapons of mass destruction? And they 
ought to stop proliferating.
    So part of the war on terror is to deny terrorist weapons getting--I 
mean, weapons to be used for means of terror getting in the hands of 
nations that will use them. And so I'm not quite sure of the----
    Q. I'm just asking if you've expanded your definition to countries 
who don't just harbor terrorists but also develop such weapons.
    The President. Have I expanded the definition? I've always had that 
definition, as far as I'm concerned.
    Yes, ma'am.

Pakistan

    Q. Mr. President, you've said a number of times you will go to all 
lengths to get members of Al Qaida. There's now news that Pakistan has 
airlifted some of its citizens back to Pakistan. Are you concerned that 
they may be taking members of Al Qaida and will not turn them over?
    The President. No, I'm not. We've had good discussions with 
Pakistan. They understand the objective is to bring Al Qaida to justice, 
and they've indicated they'll help us do so.
    All right, thank you all very much.

Note: The President spoke at 10:35 a.m. in the Rose Garden at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Ms. Mercer's father, John Mercer; 
Danny Mulkey, assistant pastor, Antioch Community Church, Waco, TX; 
President Jose Maria Aznar of Spain; and President Saddam Hussein of 
Iraq.