Press Briefing by Dana Perino

Business Wire, March 27, 2007

Q So is that traffic being safeguarded, if you will, for Congress to look at, if it decides?

MS. PERINO: With respect to presidential records, an email that is sent to or from a White House email address is automatically archived, even if the other person is not using a White House email account. I believe our -- well, I know that our White House Counsel's Office is in communication with the RNC's general counsel to make sure that those archivings have taken place.

Q So if someone sent aide X an email at one of these political accounts, are you saying that it would be archived on the --

MS. PERINO: As a general matter, I believe that to be true, but as I said, the White House -- our White House Counsel's Office is talking to the RNC just to make sure that that's the case. In some cases -- I don't know how far back that goes. I think that -- even though that there was email use in the '90s, I do think that our administration is the first, in a lot of cases, to be dealing with the volume of email that all of us deal with on a daily basis and that now you guys get to have fun with looking through.

Q So how's the White House going to respond to the request for them?

MS. PERINO: As I said, our White House Counsel's Office is talking to the RNC, and then we'll try to get back to you.

Q Is that in response to Senator Waxman's call?

MS. PERINO: The archiving?

Q The archiving, yes.

MS. PERINO: No, this has been something that was in place long before that.

Q So it's automatic?

MS. PERINO: Let me get back to you in terms of dates and how far it goes back and for which individuals.

Q I'm not sure I understand. The White House Counsel has asked the RNC to make sure which emails are archived?

MS. PERINO: Well, I took your question to be -- I took your question just a second ago to be that we all knew -- started archiving once Waxman made a request; that's not true.

Q That's not true?

MS. PERINO: No.

Q No, no, no. But you said that Attorney Fielding is in contact with the RNC to ensure -- to make sure some archiving took place. What archiving is that? I'm sorry.

MS. PERINO: The archiving that would have been for any of these -- over the past few years, of emails that had been going back and forth between people that would have these accounts to the outside.

Q How many people have those accounts?

MS. PERINO: I think it's a handful, I don't think it's a lot. Obviously, the Office of Political Affairs, because they straddle these -- both worlds. I know I don't have one.

Can I go to the back and come back? Victoria.

Q Is the White House also in touch with Bush-Cheney 2004, over their email accounts?

MS. PERINO: Not that I know of. Bush-Cheney 2004 --

Q Bush-Cheney 2004 email accounts were also --

MS. PERINO: I don't know. Let me get back to you. I don't know how those emails were -- you mean if people had both an RNC email and a Bush-Cheney email? I think, in some cases, I think those were forwarded to one place, but those are technical questions I can't answer from here right now.

Q Is it the White House's position then that it would be, or would have been inappropriate to have disposed of any emails of RNC or Bush-Cheney 2004 email accounts?