Remarks following a meeting with secretary of defense Donald H. Rumsfeld and an exchange with reporters

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, May 12, 2003

May 6,2003

Appointment of L. Paul Bremer III as Presidential Envoy to Iraq

The President. Today it's my honor to announce that Jerry Bremer has agreed to become the Presidential Envoy to Iraq. In selecting Jerry Bremer, our country will be sending one of our best citizens. He's a man. of enormous experience, a person who knows how to get things done. He's a can-do type person. He shares the same values as the American--most Americans share, and that is our deep desire to have an orderly country in Iraq that is free and at peace, where the average citizen has a chance to achieve his or her dreams.

The Ambassador goes with the full blessings of this administration and the full confidence of all of us in this administration that he can get the job done.

So, Mr. Ambassador, thanks for taking this on. I'm proud of you, and I appreciate so very much you're willing to sacrifice not only on behalf of our country but on behalf of the people of Iraq who deserve a free and democratic society. Good luck to you.

Ambassador Bremer. Thank you, Mr. President.

The President. I'll answer some questions.

Yes.

Resignation of OMB Director Mitch Daniels

Q. Mr. President, how did Mitch Daniels explain his resignation today? And does that departure affect your prospects for a tax package on the Hill?

The President. Mitch told me that he wants to go back home to the State of Indiana and perhaps pursue a run for political office. I told him, I said, "Mitch, we're going to miss you a lot in this administration." He has served us well. He has been a really good watchdog of the taxpayers' money. And you know, I'm going to miss him. On the other hand, this administration's loss is the gain of the people of Indiana.

And we're going to get a tax package through because it's the right thing to do, and I hope Congress acts decisively and boldly. I put up a package that will increase the number of new jobs by a million folks at the end of 2004. And I expect them to understand, there's a lot of people looking for work, and the burden is on them right now. And we're going to send a lot of people up there from around the country, and we'll be sending our own folks here in the administration to work with Members of the Congress to remind them that the size of the tax package will depend on them, and the bigger the package, the more likely it is that people are going to find a job here.

Randy [Randall Mikkelsen, Reuters].

Q. Mr. President, following up briefly on Scott's [Scott Lindlaw, Associated Press] question, will fiscal discipline be as high on the qualification list for Mitch Daniels' successor as it was when he entered office?

The President. First of all, fiscal discipline was high on my agenda. And therefore, anybody that works for me will place a premium on fiscal discipline. It turns out that the--that appropriators love to appropriate here in Washington. Given a pot of money, they will appropriate it, unless there's an administration willing to fight on behalf of the taxpayers. This administration is willing to fight on behalf of the taxpayers. We will insist upon fiscal discipline here in Washington, DC.

Angle [Jim Angle, FOX News].

Iraqi Weapons Lab

Q. Mr. President, Defense officials are now saying they are confident they have found a mobile biological lab, exactly what Secretary Powell described before the United Nations. Are you aware of the details? What can you tell us about that? And has Secretary Rumsfeld given you any details?

The President. I'm not surprised if we begin to uncover the weapons program of Saddam Hussein because he had a weapons program. I will leave the details of your question to the experts, but one thing we know is that he had a weapons program. We also know he spent years trying to hide the weapons program. And over time, the truth will come out and the American people will see that when we rid Saddam Hussein from--got him out of power, we made America more secure.

NOTE: The President spoke at 1:19 p.m. in the Oval Office at the White House. In his remarks, he referred to former President Saddam Hussein of Iraq. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of these remarks.