White House Report, March 1: Terrorism, Shadow Government, Yemen(Bush in Des Moines on Terrorism, Shadow Government, Yemen) (900) BUSH SAYS IT WILL TAKE A WHILE TO ACHIEVE OBJECTIVES IN WAR ON TERRORISM In response to a reporter's question in Des Moines, Iowa about Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle's criticism of the administration's war on terrorism because Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar apparently are still alive, President Bush said, "Well, I think most Americans understand that ... it's going to take a while to achieve all our objectives; that by far, the vast majority of Americans are patient. They know when you're looking for one person who may be hiding in a cave, it may take a while. But what Osama bin Laden has got to understand, if we haven't already gotten him -- I don't know where he is but ... I think he now understands that this patient and determined nation is going to hunt him down, that he can't hide long enough." Bush said most Americans also understand that "our war against terror is far greater than one person. That in order to defend freedom and protect our children and our children's children, that we must rout out terror wherever it tries to hide. And that's why we are working with our coalition on an active basis to deny safe harbor, to disrupt financial plans. And the American people are beginning to see that we've been active beyond Afghanistan. We've obviously got activities in the Philippines, activities in Georgia. And we're hunting 'em down. And I'm real proud of our military and -- we've been at this for about six months, and we've been very successful in a quick period of time. BUSH PUTS SHADOW GOVERNMENT IN FRAMEWORK OF "CONTINUITY OF GOVERNMENT" In response to a question based on newspaper stories March 1 about "a shadow government" having been setup in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks, Bush said, "we take the continuity-of-government issue very seriously, because our nation was under attack. And I still take the threats that we receive from al Qaeda killers and terrorists very seriously. I have an obligation as the President, and my administration has an obligation to the American people to provide -- put measures in place that, should somebody be successful in attacking Washington, D.C., there's an ongoing government. That's one reason why the Vice President was going to undisclosed locations. This is serious business, and we take it seriously. In response to a question about whether one reason why the shadow government was authorized was that there was a threat of a nuclear attack by al Qaeda, Bush said, "There is -- we take every threat seriously. And until this country has routed out terrorists wherever they try to hide, we're not safe. "Now, we're doing everything we can to protect the American people, and the American people understand that," said the President. "They know that our federal law enforcement, state law enforcement, local law enforcement are working day and night to protect the American people. I'm proud of the efforts," Bush said. "I believe -- I know we've made America a tougher place to attack than before. It is much harder for somebody to get on an airplane to attack again ... you know, we've got better intelligence-gathering. "We're doing everything in our power to protect the American people," the President said. "But I will tell you, there are people still in this world who want to harm America, and we're going to chase them down. And it's going to take a while. But I am a determined person. "As I told the American people, I'm not going to relent. I believe we've been called by history to lead the world," said Bush. "I believe this great, strong, compassionate country has been given a unique moment -- and I'm not going to miss the moment -- by leading the world to a more freedom-loving world. And the American people understand that and they're solid behind this administration's efforts to defend freedom." BUSH SAYS GOVERNMENT OF YEMEN IS RESPONDING AGAINST AL QUEDA In response to a question about possible U.S. assistance to Yemen, Bush replied, "I've had a very good discussion with the President of Yemen. I made it clear to him as well as other Presidents of nations that you're either with us or you're not with us, and that if you're with us, we expect results. I don't know if you remember my speech to the United Nations where I said thanks for all the condolences and flowers. Now's the time for action, that if you're part of our coalition, we expect you to work diligently and work hard to arrest al Qaeda killers and al Qaeda members or people who aid and abet al Qaeda. And the Yemen government is responding. "I've oftentimes asked," said Bush ... "what are the particulars you're doing with a particular government? I'm not going to talk about ongoing operations. I will just tell you that wherever we find al Qaeda -- an al Qaeda presence, we will work with the government to rout them out. In other words, this war against terror is far broader than Afghanistan. And we're making good progress." |