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Q. Ari, now that we’re entering phase two in the Iraqi situation, what is the United States’ position on the United Nations and NGOs taking a stronger, or more up-front role in the reconstruction process? Do we still want to have the major say?
ARI FLEISCHER: Well, as a technical matter, it’s referred to as phase four. Phase three was the military phase. Phase two was the lead-up phase. I don’t remember what phase one was. (Laughter.) But the President believes that the United Nations should have a vital role in reconstruction efforts in Iraq and the humanitarian relief programs in Iraq.

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Q. On Iraq, how are you assessing the validity of the statements by Tariq Aziz regarding Saddam Hussein, and regarding Scott Speicher? And do you have any theory on the whereabouts of Baghdad Bob?
ARI FLEISCHER: Well, I’m not going to comment on any of the reports about what we are hearing in the course of our interrogations. Just as a matter of policy, this is not something that we discuss. And Baghdad Bob — which Baghdad Bob? (Laughter.)
Q. The one that wants to replace you if he gets a chance. He’s the Information Minister in Iraq.
MR. FLEISCHER: Oh, I wasn’t aware. No, I don’t — I have not heard anything other than the President’s flavorful description of him.

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Q. The visit to the ship tomorrow, can you describe some of the logistics for us, and tell us if the President is looking forward to or dreading his first carrier landing? (Laughter.)
ARI FLEISCHER: The President is eagerly anticipating this trip. I think he’s very excited about the process of being directly with many of the sailors and the Marines who helped make the success of the mission possible. He’s also looking forward to addressing the nation from the deck of a moving aircraft carrier. That’s a wonderful metaphor for the return of our troops from combat back to their families.
The President will fly out to the aircraft carrier on Navy One, after he departs Air Force One, lands in San Diego and then transfers. And it’s a very exciting voyage, a very exciting trip, but nowhere near as exciting as the voyage that the sailors and the Marines are taking, because they’re coming home to see their families.
Q. Obviously, the President’s a former pilot. Can you talk about the plane itself and where he’s going to be?
MR. FLEISCHER: The President will be sitting in the front seat, next to the pilot of the Navy aircraft. He is a former pilot. For the sake of the landing, I’m sure he will be doing no piloting. (Laughter.) I hope he’s not watching today’s briefing. (Laughter.)

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Q. I have another question. Is it true that when the President goes to the G8 meeting in France next month, he is going to sleep across the border in Switzerland?
ARI FLEISCHER: It is not. (Laughter.) It is not true.

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Q. One housekeeping thing. Do you know if Elizabeth Smart will be at the White House tomorrow?
ARI FLEISCHER: There will be many families coming to the White House tomorrow as the President signs the National Amber Alert System. And many of these families who join the President have all been touched, one way or another, as a result of missing children. The Smart family has asked the White House not to make any statements about whether their daughter will or will not attend.
Q. How long will that last? Will we find out by either seeing her or not seeing her? Or will we know sometime before that?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, that certainly is one way. (Laughter.)
Q. I’m not trying to be flip. I’m actually just asking whether you’re going to –
MR. FLEISCHER: I’m limited at the request of the family. In respect to the family, I can’t say anything more.

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Q. With four weeks to go in this particular session with Congress, is that enough time for the tax cut, and is the President going to set some sort of deadline like he did with the budget, for April 11th? And secondly, to follow up on Dana’s question, you said that Grassley had said that he hadn’t — wasn’t aware of any Republicans who are now going to change their mind. But as you know, no one was aware of Senator Jeffords, either. So is he worried at all about this possibility?
ARI FLEISCHER: No. With all due respect, I think you’re fishing off a dock that doesn’t exist. (Laughter.) I think if you’re aware of something, you’ll bring it to me, but until that point, I really think this is — I enjoy fishing, but I think it’s akin to that.

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ARI FLEISCHER: Thank you. And before we leave, I just want to make one statement. Today is the last day for — and there’s always a risk at a press secretary ever saying anything about a reporter — but I do want to say today is the last day of Ron Fournier covering the White House as the Associated Press reporter. He’ll be going on to cover other events. And I just do want to say that it’s been a real pride and honor for me to work with a professional like Ron Fournier. And I will always wish him and his family well in all their future endeavors. So, thank you.
Q. So you really do like working with the press?
MR. FLEISCHER: Especially you, April.
Q. Yes, right. (Laughter.)
Q. Thank you.

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Q. You’re saying they’ve turned the corner, they just haven’t gone quite far enough?
ARI FLEISCHER: I’ll leave it as I put it.
Q. Why won’t you answer the question about –
MR. FLEISCHER: Greg.
Q. Hold on. We’re entitled to follow up, Ari — this isn’t homeroom.
MR. FLEISCHER: Greg.
Q. Why won’t you answer the question about whether or not — he said there are going to be consequences –
MR. FLEISCHER: David, there are other qualified reporters in here, too, who can follow-up.
Q. I didn’t say they were not qualified, Ari. I’m saying you’re running it like it’s homeroom, like we can’t follow-up when you’re refusing to answer a question that’s been posed twice to you, directly. The Secretary of State said that there would be consequences. Why won’t you say what they might be?
MR. FLEISCHER: Greg.
Q. Do you want to elaborate on what those consequences would be?
MR. FLEISCHER: I addressed it earlier. You heard what I said about consequences.
Q. You didn’t address it, which is the point. But you can’t tolerate that kind of dissent.

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Q. If you do not allow U.N. inspectors back into Iraq, then what is the administration’s plan for ensuring a chain of custody that would be internationally recognized, including by members of the Security Council?
ARI FLEISCHER: I think it’s fair to say that the procedures that have been put in place that you’ve had described to you in great detail from the briefers in the Gulf about the process that is underway for the coalition forces to search for weapons of mass destruction. The information that we are receiving as a result of the capture of certain individuals, the thousands of pages of documents that we are now receiving as a result of the successful liberation of Iraq, the analysis of these documents and the interviews with others who are associated with the programs are just beginning. And we’ve been very transparent and visible about all of that.
And I think that there will be no question in the eyes of the world, including the reporters who remain in Iraq, at the end of the day when the analysis is complete, that the process has been one of integrity, one of reliability and one of accuracy. Who has been more cautious than anybody in confirming some of the preliminary reports about findings of WMD? It’s been the United States and the United States military.
This is a very cautious, a very accurate approach. And I think that at the end of the day when the weapons are found, there will be no dispute among people about — no dispute among reasonable people about the very issues that you raised. You’ve been watching the process yourself. We have many reporters there.
Q. But reporters are not trained inspectors. Reporters often don’t know what they’re looking at. And the people at the United Nations who do this — (laughter.)
MR. FLEISCHER: Wait a minute. (Laughter.)
Q. With all due respect to us –

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Q. But, Ari, the truth is that –
ARI FLEISCHER: Terry.
Q. But can I just follow up on that, Ari?
MR. FLEISCHER: David, you’ve — we’re not going to jump around like that. We’re going to come back, and come back later.
Q. If he’s following up, I’ve got a different subject.
MR. FLEISCHER: Go ahead.

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Q. Secondly, Senator Santorum said the other day, in talking about landmark gay rights legislation, quoted, “The Supreme Court says that you have a right to consensual sex within your home, that you have the right to bigamy, you have the right to polygamy, you have the right to incest, you have the right to adultery, you have the right to anything.” Does the White House agree with those views?
ARI FLEISCHER: I have not seen the entire context of the interview, and two, I haven’t talked to the President about it. So I really don’t have anything to offer beyond that.
Q. Do you need context?
MR. FLEISCHER: I haven’t talked to the President about it; I haven’t talked to Senator Santorum. So I just don’t have anything for you on it.
Q. But is the White House satisfied to just let those words fly through the air?
Q. They’ve been out there for a couple days now.
MR. FLEISCHER: I just don’t have anything more on it.
Q. Well, why — because you’re unaware that he said that?
MR. FLEISCHER: Because I’ve been a little busy focusing on other activities and events, and I haven’t talked to the President about it.
Q. Perhaps you’ve been focusing then on the U.N. inspections in Iraq.
MR. FLEISCHER: I have been focusing on that. (Laughter.)
Q. You indicated earlier that the U.S. wishes to have the coalition — that would be mainly us — look for weapons of mass destruction. Do you see no role for the United Nations weapons inspection teams in a postwar Iraq?
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, the President is looking forward, not backward…

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ARI FLEISCHER: Bob. We’re going to keep moving. We’re loosing our audience. People are walking out. (Laughter.)
Q. Well, that’s not my problem. I have a question I want answered.
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, they walked out in the middle of your question. (Laughter.)
Q. They wanted some other stuff. (Laughter.) …

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Q. The [Shia leaders] who did not attend, why didn’t they attend?
ARI FLEISCHER: Ken, I cannot give you their reasons. I’m not their spokesman.

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Q. All right. What strategies does the White House think would work to get above $550 billion?
ARI FLEISCHER: Well, I appreciate the opportunity to reveal our strategy in public.
Q. Well, you don’t have to tell me. What are your options? You don’t have to tell me which one you’ll choose, but what do you think are your legislative options out there to get a above –
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, keep in mind that the House of Representatives passed a tax cut of the size of $726 billion. So right away you start with an equal body saying the tax cuts should be far higher than what the Senate has indicated that it would support, or that a small majority of senators have said that it would support. There’s almost as equal majority — just under a majority in the Senate — who supports a tax cut that is closer to the House number. And so there’s a lot of room here for different conversations with different senators.
And there’s also room to talk to the country about whether or not the American people believe that the child credit should be accelerated to $1,000; and the American people whether families want marriage-penalty relief; whether families want child-tax-credit relief. So there’s a variety of people to be talked to.
And, again, what I urge you to keep in mind here when you look at the Congress is, it’s not uncommon for strong positions to be staked at the beginning at the beginning of the debate by members of Congress. And then the debate unfolds, and then communication is enhanced directly with the country, directly in conversations, and we’ll see what the ultimate outcome of that is.
Q. But what do you see as your options? Could there be two separate tax packages? That that would be one way to carry the number higher. Would there be floor amendments? I mean, [h]ow do you actually –
MR. FLEISCHER: Sure, from a legislative point of view, there are any different number of ways to accomplish it.
Q. Like what?
MR. FLEISCHER: See, you do want me to start doing that in public.
Q. Yes. What do you think your options are?
MR. FLEISCHER: You said you didn’t want me to. Now you say you do.
Q. I would prefer that you do. If you choose not to, that’s all right. But what are your broad options?
MR. FLEISCHER: I think that’s what we’re going to work with members of Congress about…

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Q. But I’m just trying to fit the pieces together. You have at least a half-a-trillion tax cut. And you’re saying we have an unknown multi-billion-dollar commitment that we are going to make to Iraq. And the White House at present can’t tell the Congress, the American people how much that piece is going to be before fitting in the half-trillion-dollar tax cut?
ARI FLEISCHER: That’s an interesting notion that because we don’t know what all the costs are of Iraq, business here in the United States for the American people should no longer go on? By that logic, it would suggest we have an unknown in Iraq, so therefore we should not proceed on any domestic issues. We should not proceed on funding schools.
Q. That’s not what I said. I’m asking about responsible budgeting.
MR. FLEISCHER: Well, if you’re calling it not responsible, I think that’s subjective. The fact of the matter, as the President said today in the Rose Garden, what’s important is not to have a focus on an arbitrary number, but to focus on the fact that the American people need jobs because the economy is growing slower than he otherwise would like and, therefore, we need to give a boost, an impetus to the economy. That’s the definition of responsibility, is to worry about the needs of the American people first.

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