Text 4223, 510 rader
Skriven 2007-03-14 23:31:52 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0703142) for Wed, 2007 Mar 14
====================================================

===========================================================================
President Bush and President Calder˘n Participate in a Joint Press
Availability
===========================================================================

For Immediate Release Office of the Press Secretary March 14, 2007

President Bush and President Calder˘n Participate in a Joint Press
Availability Fiesta Americana Mérido Mérida, Mexico

˙˙White House News

˙˙˙˙˙ President's Trip to Latin America

10:04 A.M. (Local)

PRESIDENT CALDERŕN: (As translated.) Good morning, Mr. President, dear
friends from the media. I thank you for being here in this press
conference. I would like to thank very sincerely President George Bush for
visiting our country and for dedicating almost three days to his visit in
Mexico.

I'm very pleased to inform you that President George Bush and myself, we're
fully satisfied for how fruitful this meeting has been for both countries.
As leaders of sovereign nations, we have talked in a respectful environment
and a cordial environment about very diverse and complex issues of our
bilateral agenda. We coincided in sharing our core responsibility, which
now, more than ever, happened to be a shared responsibility. We reiterate
our commitment with democracy, with the defense and respect of human
rights, the promotion of free trade, with the rule of law, security,
sustainable development and, in particular, our fight against poverty.

From this platform of understanding, we have covered in detail each of the
issues of our bilateral agenda. I would like to express my gratitude to
President Bush that we have talked so openly, with the sincerity and
respect of both countries that are not only neighbors, but they are
pursuing to do what true friends should do.

We have talked, for example, about the strengthening of a task force that
will be directed to the transition of full trade of sensitive products such
as corn and beans. We talked about the need to cover the phenomenon of
migration as a factor of prosperity for both nations, orderly migration
process. We acknowledged the effort that President Bush and his
administration is doing in order to promote within the Congress a
comprehensive migratory reform that will acknowledge the rights of the
migrants and workers, that would allow orderly and legal programs for
temporary jobs, and would allow the reunification of family ties.

We have expressed our concern for protecting and guaranteeing human rights
of those who cross the border and, above all, about the enormous relevance
of generating in Mexico opportunities that the citizens need for their
development.

We shared the need of having a safe border that will close the gates to
drugs, arms and terrorism, and that will open its doors to trade --
prosperity and trade. Our border should be a tightening and closing point.
The border should bring us together and not separate us. For this, we are
considering the possibility of establishing new cross-points and border
bridges that will speed up the transit of goods and people. Both Presidents
have agreed to coordinate in a better way our actions in order to confront
organized crime in both sides of the border.

Mexico and the United States are nations that are joined together in the
pursuit for better levels of well-being for its people. We do have the
means, and in this meeting, we have seen the political will in order to
reach shared goals. I'm fully convinced, then, from this visit on, we will
be able to start a new stage of the relationships that take place between
Mexico and the United States.

PRESIDENT BUSH: Se¤or Presidente, gracias. Buenos dˇas. Laura and I have
had a fascinating trip, and our final stop was a really good one. Glad to
be back in Mexico. This is an especially beautiful part of your wonderful
country. The hospitality was very generous -- and the meals were quite
good. (Laughter.) Estoy lleno. (Laughter.)

Over the past two days, the President and I have had a very -- a series of
friendly and very productive meetings. That's what the people of our
respective countries expect. They expect people to work out differences in
a constructive way. They expect leaders to seize opportunities for the
benefit of our respective peoples. And the spirit is very strong to work
together.

I appreciate so very much the fact that during our meetings we reaffirmed
the values of democracy and transparency and rule of law that guide both
our countries. We discussed ways to make our nation safer, both nations
safer, and both nations prosperous.

President Calder˘n is taking a tough stand against organized crime and
drugs, and I appreciate that. I made it very clear to the President that I
recognize the United States has a responsibility in the fight against
drugs. And one major responsibility is to encourage people to use less
drugs. When there is demand, there is supply. And to the extent, Mr.
President, that we can continue to make progress to reduce drugs, it will
take pressure off of Mexico. So we have a responsibility.

Mexico has a responsibility, as well, and the President is working hard on
that responsibility. And we agreed to work together. Mexico is, obviously,
a sovereign nation, and the President, if he so chooses, like he has, will
lay out an agenda where the United States can be a constructive partner.

And the other place where we can work together is in the region. And so the
President, who is a very strong leader in Central America, for example,
will work with the United States and the Central American countries to
develop a regional plan, because it could be successful in Mexico, and yet
the problem could be transferred to the South, in which case we wouldn't
have the security we would want.

So, Mr. President, thank you for your leadership on this issue. I'm looking
forward to working with you on it.

We talked about the economy. My view is, is that when Mexico grows, the
United States benefits. And obviously, to the extent, Mr. President, you're
able to put forth your innovative policies, we applaud your efforts. I
appreciate so very much some of the innovative ideas that you're putting
forward. As I said last night in the dinner, I appreciate very much the
fact that you're focusing development in the south of your country.

Obviously, there was a lot of discussion about trade. People in my country
are concerned about trade; people in Mexico are concerned about trade.
There are strong protectionist sentiments in the United States. I will
work, Mr. President, to reject those protectionist sentiments, because I
believe trade is one of the best avenues to help common prosperity. Now,
anytime we have trade relations, there will be complications. And I pledged
to the President that we would work together to ensure a smooth transition
to full trade in dealing with sensitive issues such as corn and beans.

Education is an important issue that is -- for our two countries. And I
appreciate your commitment to strong education. The United States can help.
I'm a big believer in student exchanges between our two nations, on both
sides of the border. And one reason I am is because I think it's important
sometimes for people to gain an accurate perception of my country by coming
to my country. I love the fact that students travel back and forth.

Mr. President, this morning I met with some students, that are funded
through USAID programs, who have come to the United States to take
different courses in different subjects, and then have come back to Mexico
to lend the expertise that they have gained to improve the communities in
which they live. This is a vital program that the United States must
continue, in my judgment, in order to help people realize the great
benefits of education.

We spent a lot of time on the important and sensitive issue of migration. I
say, sensitive, because obviously this is an issue that people can use to
inflame passions. I say, important, because a good migration law will help
both economies and will help the security of both countries. And the reason
I say that is that if people can come into our country, for example, on a
temporary basis to work, doing jobs Americans aren't doing, they won't have
to sneak across the border.

And by the way, a system that encourages people to sneak across the border
is a system that leads to human rights abuses. It's a system that promotes
coyotes and document forgers. It's a system that allows for the
exploitation of citizens who are trying to earn a living for their
families.

And so, Mr. President, as we discussed, I will work with Congress, members
of both political parties, to pass immigration law that will enable us to
respect the rule of law and, at the same time, respect humanity in a way
that upholds the values of the United States of America.

I appreciate your hospitality. It's been a very warm greeting, Mr.
President. I thank you and your good wife for being so kind to Laura and
me. I look forward to future conversations. Muchas gracias.

PRESIDENT CALDERŕN: We will have a Q_

Q Good morning, President of the United States of America, President of the
United Mexico States. Your visit is coming to an end now. This is a
question for President George Bush. At the end of your visit, sir, have you
found allies in order to place a counterweight to the initiatives of Hugo
Chavez? What commitments did President Calder n take on in order to be a
counterweight to these initiatives of Hugo Chavez, on the one hand?

And on the other hand, President Calder˘n, Foreign Minister Patricia has
said that you are working in order to strengthen the relationship with
Venezuela. How is this compatible with the commitments that you're taking
on with President Bush in order to give thrust to this counterweight in
Latin America?

PRESIDENT BUSH: Thank you for the question. We spent a lot of time talking
about Mexico's role in the world. Mexico is a respected nation. President
Calder˘n is a respected leader. But our conversations focused on democracy
and rule of law, and prosperity and how to improve the lives of our fellow
citizens. We spent time talking about social justice and concern for the
poor.

One of the reasons I've come down here again is to remind people in this
important part of the world that the United States cares deeply about the
human condition; that we spent $1.6 billion of bilateral aid last year,
most of the money going to social justice programs. And that doesn't
include programs like the one I saw in the highlands of Guatemala, where
our military was providing basic health care for citizens.

So, Mr. President and I spent time talking about how to advance a hopeful
agenda, one that will lift the spirits of people. And I respect the role
Mexico plays. Mexico will lead diplomatic efforts for the common security
and common prosperity, and that's an important role.

PRESIDENT CALDERŕN: The commitment and purpose of my government is to have
constructive, positive and sound relations with all countries of the world,
and of course, with the countries of Latin America, without exception. And
certainly the most important relationship with Mexico abroad is the one
that we have with the United States, due to the migration that exists, the
flows through the borders and all else that you are well aware of.

However, Mexico is respectful of the opinions of other leaders. We are
respectful of the heads of state of other countries, such as Venezuela, and
certainly the United States. We are a government that has principles and
values, values such as democracy, freedom, liberty and legality and,
certainly, security and safety.

On the other hand, not as a strategy -- this was not something that we
focused on as a strategy in our talks, but as a conviction of our
government. Mexico has to play a role which is balanced, weighed, and it
has to be a leader in Latin America, in agreement with its culture, its
history, its economy, its people.

We are deeply Latin American, and we, too, want justice, development,
democracy for all of Latin America. That is where we are engaged and we are
committed. We certainly do agree and coincide with other countries, many
countries, of course, who coincide and agree with those principles.

Q Mr. President, the Attorney General acknowledges in a statement --

PRESIDENT BUSH: Hold on, Roger. The world wants to hear your voice.

Q Thank you. The Attorney General acknowledged yesterday that there were
mistakes in the firing of prosecutors. What is his future in your cabinet?
Do you have confidence in him? And more importantly -- or just as important
-- how effective can he be in Congress going forward when he's lost a lot
of confidence among Democrats and doesn't have any defenders among
Republicans?

PRESIDENT BUSH: I do have confidence in Attorney General Al Gonzales. I
talked to him this morning, and we talked about his need to go up to
Capitol Hill and make it very clear to members in both political parties
why the Justice Department made the decisions it made, making very clear
about the facts. And he's right, mistakes were made. And I'm, frankly, not
happy about it, because there is a lot of confusion over what really has
been a customary practice by the Presidents. U.S. attorneys and others
serve at the pleasure of the President. Past administrations have removed
U.S. attorneys; they're right to do so.

The Justice Department recommended a list of U.S. attorneys. I believe the
reasons why were entirely appropriate. And yet this issue was mishandled to
the point now where you're asking me questions about it in Mexico, which is
fine. If I were you, I'd ask the same question. This is an issue that --
let me just say, Al was right, mistakes were made, and he's going to go up
to Capitol Hill to correct them.

I appreciate the fact that he's taken some action, because anytime anybody
goes up to Capitol Hill, they've got to make sure they fully understand the
facts, and how they characterize the issue to members of Congress. And the
fact that both Republicans and Democrats feel like that there was not
straightforward communication troubles me, and it troubles the Attorney
General, so he took action. And he needs to continue to take action.

Q Good morning to both Presidents. President Bush, I ask you, why would you
think that Mexicans could believe in a reform in migration when for so many
years this was not a possibility nor reality? And what are your chances of
coming through with this bill in Congress? And President Calder˘n, you had
lunch with President Fox. Can you tell us what you talked about?

PRESIDENT BUSH: They talked about carne. (Laughter.) Excuse me. I wasn't
there. (Laughter.)

No, that's a legitimate question, and the question is, why now? Why do I
think something positive can happen? Well, first of all, the legislative
process takes awhile in the United States. I don't know about Mexico, Mr.
President, but sometimes legislators, you know, debate issues for awhile
before a solution can be achieved.

And we had a very -- by the way, we haven't had a serious debate on
migration until recently. A law was passed in 1986, and then there really
wasn't a serious debate until pretty much starting after the year 2000, if
my memory serves me well. I've always known this is an important issue
because I happened to have been the Governor of Texas. And so I'm very
comfortable about discussing the issue, and have elevated the issue over
the past years. And members of Congress have taken the issue very
seriously, but it's hard to get legislation out of the Congress on a very
complex issue.

A lot of Americans were deeply concerned that the United States was not
enforcing our laws. They felt like there wasn't a commitment to the rule of
law. Over the past year, I believe we have shown the American people that
there is a strong commitment to the rule of law, and I think members of
Congress are now feeling more comfortable that the country is committed to
rule of law, which then makes some more open mined to my argument, which is
that if we can have migration reform, it will make it less likely somebody
will feel like they have to sneak across our border, and therefore, take
pressure off the border. In other words, security for the country, border
security, will be enhanced by a good migration law. And then it will make
it easier for us to focus our assets on drugs, terrorists, criminals and
guns moving both ways.

I believe -- I feel pretty good about it. I don't want to predict
legislative successes. But I can tell you my mood, and my mood is
optimistic because the mood in the Congress seems like it has changed, from
skepticism last year to knowledge that getting a comprehensive bill will be
in the nation's interests.

Secondly, I'm optimistic because Republicans in the Senate are working with
Democrats in the Senate. We're facilitating that work. The administration
is very much involved with helping the senators find common ground to the
point where we can move a bill as quickly as possible out of the Senate so
it gets to the House of Representatives.

I'm not a betting man. I don't like to bet, because when I do I usually
lose, but I'm an optimistic man in this case about getting comprehensive
reform. And a bill is in the interests of both countries.

PRESIDENT CALDERŕN: I met with former President Vicente Fox, whom I like,
and we have a good friendship. We belong to the same party. I invited him
to lunch; we talked for quite a while, talked about matters in a very
constructive fashion. And he congratulated us for the work that we've done
during these first 100 days. He also said that he had the will to
collaborate and cooperate in a respectful fashion with the government for
the benefit of Mexicans.

I have also met with other former Presidents, and I'm sure that I will
continue to meet with President Fox in the future throughout my
administration.

Q Thank you, Mr. President, President Calder n. On the dismissal of U.S.
attorneys, there have been allegations that political motivations were
involved. Is political loyalty to your administration an appropriate
factor? And when you talked to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales last year,
what did you say, and what did you direct him to do?

PRESIDENT BUSH: Thanks, Kelly. I've heard those allegations about political
decision-making; it's just not true. Secondly, just so you know, I get
asked -- I get complaints all the time from members of Congress on a
variety of subjects -- this senator, this congressperson so-and-so --
there's occasionally frustration with the executive branch. And they will
pull me aside and say, are you aware of this, are you aware of that? And I
did receive complaints about U.S. attorneys.

I specifically remember one time I went up to the Senate and senators were
talking about the U.S. attorneys. I don't remember specific names being
mentioned, but I did say to Al last year -- you're right, last fall -- I
said, have you heard complaints about AGs, I have -- I mean, U.S.
attorneys, excuse me -- and he said, I have. But I never brought up a
specific case nor gave him specific instructions.

Q Sir, might he have inferred that you discussed it with him was a need for
him to take action?

PRESIDENT BUSH: You're going to have to ask Al that question, but as I say,
I discuss with my Cabinet officials complaints I hear. When members of the
Senate come up and say to me, I've got a complaint, I think it's entirely
appropriate and necessary for me to pass those complaints on. I don't every
single time, but people view their moment with the President sometimes as
an opportunity to unload their frustrations about how things may be working
in their state -- or congresspersons how things may be working in their
district. And whether it be the Attorney General or the Secretary of State
or other members of my Cabinet, I pass those complaints on at times.

What Al did was -- and what the Justice Department did was appropriate.
U.S. attorneys serve at the pleasure of the President. In other words,
they're appointed by the President. They can be removed by the President.
What was mishandled was the explanation of the cases to the Congress. And
Al has got work to do up there. And the thing I appreciate about the
Attorney General was, he said publicly he could have handled it better,
mistakes were made, and took action. And, obviously, more action needs to
be taken. That's what I discussed with him on the phone today.

Q Good morning. President Calder n, concerning energy matters, three days
before the celebration of the anniversary of the expropriation of oil in
our country, could you tell us what the position of the senators of
opposition have stated about these matters of oil? We know that the
reserves, and of course this oil abundance, perhaps, is coming to its end.
Was this issue on oil discussed here?

And, President Bush, 2008 will welcome the opening up of livestock and
agriculture matters. Sir, is there a possibility of renegotiating or
perhaps leave it for a later date this negotiation of this part of the
trade agreement, because of the complaints of Mexican producers?

PRESIDENT CALDER N: The truth of the matter is that we did not discuss this
issue of oil, because this is something that has to do specifically with
Mexicans. This is a Mexican issue. We will not privatize a company that
belongs to Mexicans, such as of the case of Pemex. We will have to see this
later on, in terms of sovereignty, and speak about the initiatives, of
course, and to see what our Congress states. We do have problems with the
decline of especially Cantarell, which has been very important in the
production of oil throughout the years, but which is declining in amounts.
But we will have to be very clear on the fact that we will be sharing
responsibility between Congress and the President.

Concerning agriculture and livestock, I do share the sensitivity of our
working group and President Bush. We have set up a working group to deal
with the matters of corn and bean, precisely to make more agile this
transition, which is established at the end of the free trade agreement,
NAFTA.

We do have different problems now today, different from what it was one
year ago when we see that the prices of corn are going down. We are having
very high costs in our production. This has left our producers out of
competition. And now we are seeing what consumption is all about with these
very high prices, in the case of corn.

However, due to the circumstances we have in this meeting, we strengthened
and we will be strengthening even more a group, a working group, which will
address these issues, which are very sensitive for Mexican producers.

PRESIDENT BUSH: One reason I didn't bring up energy is because energy is --
it belongs to sovereign Mexico. And I'm confident that the President will
make the best interests for the people of Mexico, working with the
Congress.

In terms of opening up NAFTA, renegotiating NAFTA is a mistake, in my
judgment. NAFTA has worked. And there is a mechanism in place that the
President just described about how to resolve sensitive issues. There will
be sensitive issues on a frequent basis when it comes to trade. And the
best way to resolve those is through negotiations and discussions,
recognizing the sensitivities on both sides of the border, but trying to
renegotiate a treaty that has been incredibly important for both sides of
the border, in my judgment, would be a mistake. You don't want to weaken
NAFTA; you want to make sure it stays strong in order that prosperity
continues to expand and people benefit on both sides of the border.

Q Thank you. President Bush, you said the other day that you want, first,
on immigration, want to first find a coherent Republican position in the
Senate. Most Senate Republicans voted against last year's bill in the
Senate. What changes are you willing to make, and would you be willing to
forego a path to citizenship as part of that bill? And President Calder˘n,
it's been reported you have relatives working in the United States. What
have you learned from their experiences? Do they want to become citizens?
And do you know, are they there legally? (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT BUSH: What was your question again? No. (Laughter.) Michael
Chertoff and Carlos Gutierrez are negotiating with Republicans, helping
Republicans find common ground, Steve, and this isn't the appropriate place
to be conducting negotiations.

It is the appropriate place to talk about the spirit of moving the bill
forward. And, obviously, we would like to be able to convince no voters
that it makes sense to be for a comprehensive immigration policy. I feel
strongly that it's in our interests, national interests, to get a bill
done. That's why, after all, I gave the address to the United States from
the Oval Office on this very subject.

And you asked about amnesty -- look, amnesty is not going to fly. There is
not going to be automatic citizenship, it just won't work. People in the
United States don't support that, and neither do I, nor will kicking people
out of the United States work. It's not practical. It is not a realistic
solution. Some may articulate that, but it's empty talk. And so, therefore,
there's got to be a middle ground, a reasonable way to deal with the 12
million people or so that have been in our country for a period of time.
And that's where a lot of the discussions are taking place. And I think we
can find a rational way forward, somewhere in between automatic citizenship
and kicking people out of the country. It's in our interests we do so. We
are a nation of law, and therefore, if we can change the law for the
better, we ought to do so.

And so, Mr. President, back to the man's question over there, I'm
optimistic. But he helped -- his question was somewhat insightful -- very
insightful, because what he pointed out was the legislative challenges that
we face. He also made it clear in his question that the administration is
very much involved with working with Republican senators to help find
common ground between Republican Senators and Senator Kennedy, who is
emerging as the lead senator on the Democrat side.

I will tell you, if we can find that common ground, we have a very good
chance of getting the bill out of the Senate, because Senator Kennedy is
one of the best legislative senators there is. He can get the job done. I
know firsthand, because we reformed our education system, Mr. President,
with his help in 2001. Not to slip in another issue, but we do need to get
No Child Left Behind reauthorized, and I'm looking forward to working with
Senator Kennedy on the reauthorization.

PRESIDENT CALDERŕN: Yes, I do have family in the United States, and what I
can tell you is that these are people who work and respect that country.
They pay their taxes to the government. These are people who work in the
field, they work with -- in the fields with vegetables. They probably
handle that which you eat, the lettuce, et cetera. These are people who
respect the United States. These are people who have children, who want
these children to be educated with respect for the land where they live and
with respect for Mexico.

I am from Michoacan, and in Michoacan, we have four million people, two
million of these Michoacanos are in the States. We want them to come back;
we want them to find jobs here in Mexico. We miss them. These are our best
people. These are bold people, they're young, they're strong, they're
talented. They have overcome tremendous adversity, who are working so that
they can come back to their country someday.

And I'm saying this for all Mexicans, not only those Mexicans that I am
related to by blood, by land, soil, air. And I want to say that I am
fighting so that instead of having our people cross the border to find
work, we want investments to cross the border and come over here.

The U.S. economy is capital intensive. We are labor- intensive. We can give
democracy to our people if we find sound basis so that we could also find
those factors which can give jobs for our people. I have said this, and I
will continue to say this: I hope -- and I hope that some day, everybody
will believe as I do. I believe in work. I believe that I will see all of
these people coming back and embrace them knowing that, well, that we live
in countries that defend liberty and freedom.

Thank you so much to all. Have a nice day. (Applause.)

END 10:42 A.M. (Local)

===========================================================================
Return to this article at:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/03/20070314-2.html

 * Origin: (1:3634/12)