Friday
Oct272006
White House Gaggle
Friday, October 27, 2006 at 3:00AM
By Gregory Gorman
October 27, 2006
President's Schedule
The president will have his usual briefings. This morning he will record his weekly radio address on taxes and the economy followed by interviews with regional television stations. He will have policy time at 1:05pm today. Tomorrow he will travel to Indiana, South Carolina and Iowa in advance of the November 7th election. He will spend Sunday in Washington.
President's Week Ahead
On Monday the president will travel to Statesboro, Georgia and Sugarland, Texas for Victory 2006 rallies. Tuesday he will travel to Perry, Georgia for another Victory 2006 rally. He has no public events scheduled for Wednesday. On Thursday he will travel to Montana and Nevada for more Victory 2006 rallies. The remainder of next week's schedule will be announced at a later time.
Economic Slow-Down
White House Press Secretary Tony Snow said that everyone expected the recently announced slow down in the economy. Snow said, "If you took a look at the combination of rising energy prices and also rising interest rates, now you have seen a reversal on both. If you take a look for instance at the Dow Jones Industrials, it has set a record the last 13 of 18 days, that is usually a leading indicator. If you take a look at the broader benchmarks of economic growth and economic strength, you've got employment increasing; you still have a net employment growth of 365,000 for the quarter".
Waterboarding as a Torture Technique
In response to a question about whether the president agrees with the vice president that "a dunk in the water is a no-brainer", Snow said that this was a mischaracterization of the president. He also stated that the vice president did not make any statement about waterboarding saying that a recent question posed to him on the subject was a "loosely worded question" and that the word waterboarding did not appear in the question. Snow reiterated that this administration does not talk about questioning techniques including waterboarding and that the vice president neither confirms nor denies its use. He also said the administration does not condone or practice torture.
NATO Secretary General
Snow commented that today's meeting between the president and the NATO Secretary General is planned as a visit between the leaders and that there is no planned discussion of Russia. On the recent civilian deaths in Afghanistan during a NATO attack, Snow said that he will be in attendance for today's meeting and he will brief the press in the afternoon after the meeting takes place.
New Jersey Supreme Court Decision on Same-Sex Marriage
Snow reiterated the president's views that marriage is a vital and sacred union between a man and a woman. When asked if the president is going to make an issue of the recent court ruling in New Jersey, Snow said that it is an issue in this election but not one of the president's raising.
Iran
Snow again commented that this administration does not want Iran moving toward development of nuclear technology.
"Get Out the Vote" Campaign
When asked to characterize the importance of the "Get Out the Vote" campaign, Snow replied that it is absolutely critical. He went on to say, "We feel very confident, not only in the quality but also in the enthusiasm of the people on our side for the 'Get Out the Vote' effort. We have very strong organization and very strong techniques."
Maliki Comments
When asked to clarify the recent comments by Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki, Ambassador Khalilzad, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and President Bush on the issue of benchmarks for Iraq, Snow said, "I think what you have here is more of a disagreement of semantics than substance". He said Maliki is rightly resistant to the notion that someone will dictate the terms of his government and Snow reminded the press that the United States will not do that. Snow recognized that there have been several different characterizations on this issue, but he verified that all sides are working closely together in very close and effective collaboration.
October 27, 2006
President's Schedule
The president will have his usual briefings. This morning he will record his weekly radio address on taxes and the economy followed by interviews with regional television stations. He will have policy time at 1:05pm today. Tomorrow he will travel to Indiana, South Carolina and Iowa in advance of the November 7th election. He will spend Sunday in Washington.
President's Week Ahead
On Monday the president will travel to Statesboro, Georgia and Sugarland, Texas for Victory 2006 rallies. Tuesday he will travel to Perry, Georgia for another Victory 2006 rally. He has no public events scheduled for Wednesday. On Thursday he will travel to Montana and Nevada for more Victory 2006 rallies. The remainder of next week's schedule will be announced at a later time.
Economic Slow-Down
White House Press Secretary Tony Snow said that everyone expected the recently announced slow down in the economy. Snow said, "If you took a look at the combination of rising energy prices and also rising interest rates, now you have seen a reversal on both. If you take a look for instance at the Dow Jones Industrials, it has set a record the last 13 of 18 days, that is usually a leading indicator. If you take a look at the broader benchmarks of economic growth and economic strength, you've got employment increasing; you still have a net employment growth of 365,000 for the quarter".
Waterboarding as a Torture Technique
In response to a question about whether the president agrees with the vice president that "a dunk in the water is a no-brainer", Snow said that this was a mischaracterization of the president. He also stated that the vice president did not make any statement about waterboarding saying that a recent question posed to him on the subject was a "loosely worded question" and that the word waterboarding did not appear in the question. Snow reiterated that this administration does not talk about questioning techniques including waterboarding and that the vice president neither confirms nor denies its use. He also said the administration does not condone or practice torture.
NATO Secretary General
Snow commented that today's meeting between the president and the NATO Secretary General is planned as a visit between the leaders and that there is no planned discussion of Russia. On the recent civilian deaths in Afghanistan during a NATO attack, Snow said that he will be in attendance for today's meeting and he will brief the press in the afternoon after the meeting takes place.
New Jersey Supreme Court Decision on Same-Sex Marriage
Snow reiterated the president's views that marriage is a vital and sacred union between a man and a woman. When asked if the president is going to make an issue of the recent court ruling in New Jersey, Snow said that it is an issue in this election but not one of the president's raising.
Iran
Snow again commented that this administration does not want Iran moving toward development of nuclear technology.
"Get Out the Vote" Campaign
When asked to characterize the importance of the "Get Out the Vote" campaign, Snow replied that it is absolutely critical. He went on to say, "We feel very confident, not only in the quality but also in the enthusiasm of the people on our side for the 'Get Out the Vote' effort. We have very strong organization and very strong techniques."
Maliki Comments
When asked to clarify the recent comments by Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki, Ambassador Khalilzad, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and President Bush on the issue of benchmarks for Iraq, Snow said, "I think what you have here is more of a disagreement of semantics than substance". He said Maliki is rightly resistant to the notion that someone will dictate the terms of his government and Snow reminded the press that the United States will not do that. Snow recognized that there have been several different characterizations on this issue, but he verified that all sides are working closely together in very close and effective collaboration.
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