[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 41, Number 13 (Monday, April 4, 2005)]
[Pages 538-539]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks Prior to a Briefing on the Findings of the Commission on the 
Intelligence Capabilities of the United States Regarding Weapons of Mass 
Destruction

March 31, 2005

Death of Theresa Marie Schiavo

    Today millions of Americans are saddened by the death of Terri 
Schiavo. Laura and I extend our condolences to Terri Schiavo's families. 
I appreciate the example of grace and dignity they have displayed at a 
difficult time. I urge all those who honor Terri Schiavo to continue to 
work to build a culture of life, where all Americans are welcomed and 
valued and protected, especially those who live at the mercy of others.
    The essence of civilization is that the strong have a duty to 
protect the weak. In cases where there are serious doubts and questions, 
the presumption should be in the favor of life.

Intelligence Capabilities

    The most solemn duty of the American President is to protect the 
American people. Since September the 11th, 2001, we've taken bold and 
vigorous steps to prevent further attacks and overcome emerging threats. 
We face a new and different kind of enemy. The threats today are 
unprecedented. The lives of our citizens are at stake. To protect them, 
we need the best intelligence possible, and we must stay ahead of 
constantly changing intelligence challenges.
    So last year I issued an Executive order creating an independent 
Commission to look at America's intelligence capabilities, especially 
our intelligence about weapons of mass destruction. I asked two fine 
Americans to chair this Commission, Judge Laurence Silberman and former 
Senator Chuck Robb. They have done an excellent job. I appreciate your 
service to our country.
    I also want to thank the other members of the Commission, Senator 
John McCain, Rick Levin, Harry Rowen, Walt Slocombe, Bill Studeman, 
Judge Patricia Wald, Chuck Vest, and Lloyd Cutler. I want to thank them 
for their hard work. They spent a lot of time on this project. I asked 
these distinguished individuals to give me an unvarnished look at our 
intelligence community, and they have delivered.
    This morning the Commission presented me with their recommendations, 
which are thoughtful and extremely significant. The central conclusion 
is one that I share: America's intelligence community needs fundamental 
change to enable us to successfully confront the threats of the 21st 
century.
    My administration has taken steps consistent with the Commission's 
recommendations. In February, I named John Negroponte the first Director 
of National Intelligence, a post that was created to help ensure that 
our intelligence community works as a single, unified enterprise. It's 
important for Congress to move quickly on John's confirmation, because 
he'll have a key role in the continued reform and restructuring of 
intelligence capabilities.
    Today I've directed Homeland Secretary Adviser Fran Townsend to 
oversee the interagency process, to review the Commission's findings, 
and to ensure that concrete action is taken. The Commission report 
delivers a sharp critique of the way intelligence has been collected and 
analyzed against some of the most difficult intelligence targets, 
especially Iraq.
    To win the war on terror, we will correct what needs to be fixed and 
build on what the Commission calls solid intelligence successes. These 
include the uncovering of Libya's nuclear and missile programs. In 
Pakistan, our intelligence helped expose and shut down the world's most 
dangerous nuclear proliferation network. Where we have had success, the 
Commission reports we have seen innovative collection techniques and a 
fusion of interagency intelligence capabilities. We must work to 
replicate these successes in other areas.
    The men and women of our intelligence community work hard, and the 
sacrifices they have made have helped protect America. And our Nation is 
grateful for their hard work. The work they're doing is critical. We 
need to prevent terrorists from getting their hands on the weapons of 
mass murder they would like to use against our citizens.
    The work of our intelligence community is extremely difficult work. 
Every day, dangerous regimes are working to prevent us

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from uncovering their programs and their possible relationships with 
terrorists. And the work our intelligence men and women do is, by 
nature, secret, which is why the American people never hear about many 
of their successes. I'm proud of the efforts of our intelligence 
workers, and I'm proud of their commitment to the security of our 
country. And the American people should be proud too.
    And that's why this report is important. It will enable these fine 
men and women to do their jobs in better fashion, to be able to more 
likely accomplish their mission, which is to protect the American 
people. And that's why I'm grateful to the Commission for this hard 
work.
    The President and his national security team must have intelligence 
that is timely and intelligence that is accurate. In their report today, 
the Commission points out that America needs to know much more about the 
weapons programs and intentions of our most dangerous adversaries. They 
have given us useful and important guidance that will help us transform 
our intelligence capabilities for the needs of a dangerous new century.
    In other words, we need to adjust. We need to understand the threats 
and adjust our capabilities to meet those threats. We will work to give 
our intelligence professionals the tools they need. Our collection and 
analysis of intelligence will never be perfect, but in an age where our 
margin for error is getting smaller, in an age in which we are at war, 
the consequences of underestimating a threat could be tens of thousands 
of innocent lives. And my administration will continue to make 
intelligence reforms that will allow us to identify threats before they 
fully emerge so we can take effective action to protect the American 
people.
    I'm grateful for your hard work. And now the Chairman of the 
Commission and the Co-Chairman of the Commission have agreed to answer 
your questions.

Note: The President spoke at 11:31 a.m. in Room 450 of the Dwight D. 
Eisenhower Executive Office Building. The Office of the Press Secretary 
also released a Spanish language transcript of these remarks.