[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 40, Number 13 (Monday, March 29, 2004)]
[Pages 447-448]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks Following a Cabinet Meeting and an Exchange With Reporters

March 23, 2004

    The President. Thank you all for coming. We've just had a very 
constructive Cabinet meeting. We talked about the need for us to remain 
strong in the war on terror. I assured our--my team that America is not 
going to blink in the face of the attacks that took place in Spain. As a 
matter of fact, we'll continue to rally the world to fight off terror.
    Here at home, my economic advisers, economic team presented a very 
upbeat assessment about our economy. It's strong, and it's growing 
stronger. Inflation is low. Interest rates are low. Manufacturing 
activity is up. The job base is growing. There's a lot of signs that the 
economic plan we put in place are working. There's more work to do.
    In order to make sure the economy continues to grow, in order to 
fight off economic isolationism, we've got to work to control the cost 
of health care, which makes it awfully difficult for many small 
businesses to provide health care for their employees. We need an energy 
plan. The Secretary of Energy discussed the need for an energy plan. We 
need to make sure that we have legal reform. Junk and frivolous lawsuits 
make it awfully difficult for people to find work here in the United 
States. We need to make sure that the regulations at the Federal, State, 
and local level are absolutely necessary. And finally, we need to make 
sure the tax cuts are permanent. Tax relief has stimulated economic 
growth, and they need to be permanent. And I call upon Congress once 
again to, at the very least, make sure the child credit, the marriage 
penalty, and the 10-percent bracket are made permanent now so that 
people can plan--consumers can plan and small-business owners can plan.
    But I'm pleased with the report I received. I'm pleased with the 
progress. There is more work to do. I look forward to working with 
Congress to get it done.
    I'll answer two questions here today. Tom [Tom Raum, Associated 
Press], wherever you are.
    Q. Mr. President, over here.
    The President. Yes, right there.

Counterterrorism Efforts

    Q. Mr. President, there's been a lot of attention over the last 
couple days to a book written by your former counterterrorism adviser 
that suggests that you understated the threat of Al Qaida before 
September 11th and then rushed to blame Iraq after the terror attacks. 
Is there any basis at all in any of these allegations? And do you agree 
with the Republican Senator Chuck Hagel that the White House needs to 
take these charges more seriously and not just undermine Mr. Clarke's 
credibility?
    The President. Well, the facts are these: George Tenet briefed me on 
a regular basis about the terrorist threats to the United

[[Page 448]]

States of America, and had my administration had any information that 
terrorists were going to attack New York City on September the 11th, we 
would have acted. We have been chasing down Al Qaida ever since they 
attacked. We've captured or killed two-thirds of their known leaders. 
And we're still pursuing them, and we will continue to pursue them so 
long as I am the President of the United States.
    I want to thank the troops involved. We've got a couple of thousand 
troops involved in Afghanistan that are hunting down Al Qaida in that 
part of the world. We've got intelligence officers all over the world 
collecting information so that we can act. We've got a strong network of 
cooperative governments trying to chase down terrorist money and to 
prevent that money from being spread around to cause harm.
    I was on the phone today to Gerhard Schroeder, reminding them that 
we need to stay strong in the fight on terror. And I appreciated his 
strong comments today by phone, that he fully understood the stakes. 
We're making progress. There is more work to do. And this country will 
stay on the hunt. The best way to protect our country from further 
attack is to find the terrorists before they come to our homeland or 
anywhere else to inflict harm.
    Steve [Steve Holland, Reuters].

Hamas Threats/Middle East Peace Process

    Q. Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. Are you worried about the threat from 
Hamas to attack U.S. targets over Israel's killing of Sheik Yassin? And 
were you troubled by his killing?
    The President. Yes, I'm worried about terrorist groups targeting 
America. And we take every threat seriously in this administration. 
Nearly every morning that I come to work, I talk to George Tenet, FBI 
Director Mueller, and others about the threats to the United States. And 
there's still serious threats because of what we stand for. There are 
still people who want to harm our country. And so, whether it be an 
Hamas threat or an Al Qaida threat, we take them very seriously in this 
administration.
    As far as the Middle East, it's a troubled region, and the attacks 
were troubling. There needs to be a focused, concerted effort by all 
parties to fight terror. Any country has a right to defend itself from 
terror. Israel has the right to defend herself from terror. And as she 
does so, I hope she keeps consequences in mind as to how to make sure we 
stay on the path to peace. This administration is committed to finding a 
two-state solution--a two-state solution for the good of Israel, a two-
state solution for the good of the Palestinian people. To this end, if 
the circumstances on the ground allow, I'll be sending a team back out 
to the Middle East next week to see if we can't keep the process alive, 
the process toward peace.

Note: The President spoke at 2:05 p.m. in the Cabinet Room at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder of 
Germany. Reporters referred to Richard A. Clarke, former National 
Coordinator for Transnational Threats at the National Security Council; 
and Sheik Ahmed Yassin, founder of the Hamas terrorist organization, who 
was killed in an Israeli missile attack in Gaza City on March 22.