White House Press Briefing, Evening, 2/9/11.
White House Press Secretary Bill Bradley (BB): Good evening everyone. Let's get started.
President Walken will be meeting with Governor Emily Rudden of Indiana tomorrow, as part of his continuing effort to speak with the governor of each state. Governor Rudden will be meeting with President Walken in the Oval Office, and Treasury Secretary Kendrick will also be attending. As you know, he was the Governor of Indiana, and still holds an interest in how the state is managed. Tonight, the President and First Lady will be hosting a small, private dinner for friends from Missouri.
Secretary of State Arnold Vinick will be heading to Israel tomorrow, as part of the ongoing efforts to secure peace in the region. He will be meeting with Prime Minister Zahavy of Israel, Chairman Mukarat of the Palestinian Authority and General Mitch Jensen, as well as the British Foreign Minister Malcolm Cutter, in regards to the infusion of NATO troops into the peacekeeping efforts. He will be back by Monday.
Questions?
Q: Chris Procter, Newsweek. President Walken has been in office nearly a month, yet has only taken 4 trips outside of Washington, and 2 of those were to Missouri. Why hasn't the President been traveling more?
BB: Chris, the President has been extremely busy as of late, appointing the Cabinet, meeting with Congressional leaders, speaking with foreign officials, and especially getting briefed in on all of the economic and budgetary concerns, in simple language, trying to get his Administration up and running. President Walken is aware of the people's desire to see him, and we have several trips scheduled, including a 4 day swing through the South later in the month, Atlanta, Charlotte, a couple of smaller cities. The President will be speaking to the American people as soon as he is able.
Next question.
Q: Greg-
InterruptingCP: Sorry Greg, but I have a follow-up.
What will the President be speaking on, and what style will he be using-Just speeches, or the kind of town hall he's become famous for?
BB: It's close to two weeks from now, so the topics are still up in the air. Presumably, it will be on the economy, jobs, taxes, that sort of thing.
As for the style, again, that hasn't been decided. The President would like to get in contact with voters, so it would be my guess that there will be at least one town hall meeting.
Greg, you had a question?
Q: Japanese Prime Minister Arata Kanzaki is scheduled to arrive in Washington for an official State Visit next week, the first of the Walken Administration. What will be discussed at the meeting, and what's the mood of the White House about the news?
BB: The mood is extremely excited. We're ready to play gracious hosts to Prime Minister Kanzaki, and the Walken family is looking forward to meeting the Prime Minister. Several of the younger staffers have tried to learn Japanese, with-how shall we say-varying degrees of success. By request from the Japanese delegation, the staff has been whipping up an "all-American" feast, which will, of course, feature apple pie and vanilla ice cream as dessert.
On a more serious note, the President and Prime Minister will be discussing the relationship between Japan and the United States in general, along with the current security concerns in the Pacific region, and economic conditions. Specifically, I know that US military bases in Japan, the current trade imbalance between the two countries and the possible deployment of Japanese troops to the Middle East will be spoken about in depth.
Q: Quick follow-up: By regional security concerns, do you mean China and North Korea?
BB: There will be several issues discussed at the talks, and I imagine that both North Korea and China will be among them. Concerns is a bad word to use though-"Interests" is more representative of what will be discussed.
Steve?
Q: George Rohr, the Political Director for the American Christian Assembly, has stated that "The Walken Administration has veered hard to the left, and abandoned the conservative principles that we elected him for," in a letter to members, concerning the continuing suspension of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," from the former Administration. Any response?
BB: For Pete's sake, this is getting ridiculous. Once again, as I've said before, President Walken has not abandoned his conservative principles, and he has most certainly not "veered hard to the left," or whatever nonsense anyone else is saying. The continuation of the Executive Order by the last President was due, in part, to avoid any huge, purely political wrangling with Congress over our major nominations. President Walken remains committed in his belief that marriage is between one man and one woman, and he has tasked the Defense Department with examining the policy in detail, with an eye for either repeal of the policyor reinstatement by the end of the year. He also is firmly still committed to reducing federal spending, alleviating the burden of federal regulations on business and the people, and cutting government waste-In fact, President Walken has named Vice President Clark to head a task force with exactly that goal in mind. So to accuse the President of abandoning his beliefs is simply ridiculous.
Katie next, then Mark.
Q: A trio of Senators proposed legislation with the idea of reforming illegal immigration today, and the House currently has a bill in writeup, which promises comprehensive reform. What is the White House's position on immigration reform, and will they be injecting themselves into the debate?
BB: The Legislative Affairs Office has been made aware of the bills, and they are keeping a close eye on them. While I haven't spoken to the President on this issue, he has always been a firm believer in enforcement first and above anything else. However, as has been stated before, the President wants to work with Congress, and establishing real, meaningful immigration reform would be a good start.
Q: When you say enforcement, does that mean that deportations and the like would be on the agenda?
BB: As I just said, I haven't spoken to the President, the Justice Department, Legislative Affairs or anyone in Congress about this legislation. I don't know what is in it, or what the response will be when a response is formulated. So any more questions to the nature of the legislation or our response to it would be erroneous at this point in time.
BB: Mark?
Q: I've got a source saying that Michael Walken will be deployed as part of the 101st in the peacekeeping mission to Israel. Is this true or false?
BB: That's true. Michael will be deploying as part of a 6-month rotation in the Gaza area, working in the area of peacekeeping.
Q: What was the President's reaction?
BB: The President is, understandably, nervous about Michael's deployment, but also very proud of him. And before you ask, the President has not asked or in any way indicated for Michael to be assigned to a different area, and any rumors to the contrary are utterly false, despicable lies. President Walken is a citizen like any other when it comes to this matter, and Captain Walken is a soldier. They will both do their Constitutionally-sworn duties, in this case, making sure that our soldiers continue to work for peace in the Middle East, and that they come home safely. No matter who's father is who, or whose son they are, that should be the premier focus here.
BB:Is that it? Alright, that's a full lid people. Katie, I'd like to see you please.
