President George W. Bush tells ABCNEWS' Charles Gibson about his first 100 days in office on Good Morning America, 25 April 2001
Presidential Milestone
U.S. Must Defend Taiwan, Bush Says
W A S H I N G T O N, April 25 — Reflecting back on his first 100 days in office,
President George W. Bush said that the U.S. should do everything it can to defend
Taiwan against a Chinese attack, and that he is not concerned about the vice
president's health issues incapacitating him.
In an interview with ABCNEWS' Charles Gibson, Bush touched on everything from
U.S.-Sino policy to what he considers his biggest mistake: letting others define
him on the environment.
During the interview, Bush told Gibson that he did not talk to his father
while U.S. soldiers were being detained by China after their surveillance plane
collided with one of Beijing's fighter jets. However, shortly after the interview
ended, the White House called Gibson with a clarification.
White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said the president had thought about the
interview and recalled that he did talk to his father at the very end of the
China crisis, before the crew was released.
The transcript of the interview that aired on Good Morning America today follows.
ABCNEWS' CHARLES GIBSON: Mr. President, I'm not sure a 100 days is an important
milestone, or a psychological one, but what would you give yourself as a grade
for the first 100 days?
PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: Doing pretty darn good. I think we've laid a foundation
for some serious change in Washington, first of all, a change of attitude, and,
you know, Washington'd be a better place, a place where people spend more time
trying to figure out how to bolster a political party as opposed to an agenda
for the people, and one way to describe, it's a zero sum attitude where you
win and I lose, or I win and you lose, and I think we're beginning to change
that attitude and that's important.
GIBSON: So how does that translate into a grade?
PRESIDENT BUSH: I'm not gonna give myself a numerical grade, only because people
might think I was a little haughty if I did so, but I, I appreciate what's going
on here.
MR. GIBSON: Biggest surprise that you've had so far, didn't expect, about being
President?
PRESIDENT BUSH: I guess how much I really enjoy the job. I find it to be a fascinating
job. I, it's a job for a decision maker. I make a lot of decisions, some of
them significant; some of them may never make it to anybody's radar screen,
but, but nevertheless a decision.
GIBSON: The thing you're most pleased about in the first 100 days.
PRESIDENT BUSH: My team, and how well the team is working together, how there's
a, a clear sense of all of us being here, in Washington, working for something
bigger than ourselves
GIBSON: Biggest mistake made so far.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Probably wearing a red tie too many times. I don't know.
GIBSON: None of us gets through a 100 days, whether we're President, or not,
without something.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Well, I think maybe, perhaps, for example, allowing people to
define me as somebody who's not friendly toward the environment, when in fact
my administration has made positive strides toward, toward cleaning up the environment.
We're goning to reduce arsenic in drinking water, and yet, somehow, I get tagged
for not wanting to reduce arsenic in drinking water. Lead regulation. I signed
a treaty to — I mean, there's a lot of things that we're doing, that, are very
positive for the environment.
GIBSON: If you raise that one, every one of the Clinton regulations that you
reviewed in February and March, you reversed, then got …
PRESIDENT BUSH: Oh, I don't …
MR. GIBSON: A bad name for it. April, all of a sudden, you're affirming …
PRESIDENT BUSH: Well, let's, no, let's take, let's take the arsenic reduction,
for example. It was to take effect. The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency)
said no, we're not gonna let it come to, into effect. We're going to review
it. We're gonna reduce arsenic in, in, in water. We just haven't decided how
much. And, somehow, that's, that's to mean I'm against the environment?
GIBSON: Did you think, though, in that February, March period, when you were
making those decisions, that you were getting a bad name on it, and therefore
you had to do something to turn that around?
PRESIDENT BUSH: No. We had a strategy all along to bring a common sense, science-based
approach to the environment and I will continue to do so.
GIBSON: An ABC-Washington Post poll, the most recent one — very high approval
rating, up at 63 percent, a little lower than your dad had in his first 100
days, but a good approval rating, and yet less than half the people in the poll
say that they approve of policies or feel that you understand their needs, which
could be interpreted as saying, "nice guy but we don't like his politics or
his policies."
PRESIDENT BUSH: Well, you know, for example, the, the signature piece a legislation's
going be the tax relief plan. I think when it's all said and done, most Americans
will appreciate tax relief, and …
GIBSON: Yet the poll would indicate only a third of them would prefer that.
Two-thirds say they'd rather be spending the money to meet people's needs.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Well, that's the point, that's the problem with polls. You see,
it's a poorly-worded poll, and all due respect to your pollster, because it's
not a zero sum attitude. We can meet needs. We set aside all the Social Security
money, we doubled the Medicare budget, we provide a significant increase for
education spending, we pay down debt, we set aside a trillion dollars for contingency,
and we articulate a $1.6 trillion tax relief plan. But it's a philosophical
statement. Once we meet our needs in Washington, who do you want to spend the
people's money? There are some up here that would rather the Federal Government
spend the money. Not me and my administration. We want the people to have their
own money so they can spend it themselves.
GIBSON: Some policy questions — China. When are you gonna resume the flights?
BUSH: I'm not gonna tell you.
GIBSON: Have they started again?
PRESIDENT BUSH: No they haven't.
GIBSON: Will there be those kinds …
PRESIDENT BUSH: The point is they will start again, and they, they need to start
again for the good of the country. It's important for us to be gathering information
and to do so, though, over international airspace. We're not violating anybody's
airspace. We're conducting surveillance.
GIBSON: The plane we lost. Lost cause?
PRESIDENT BUSH: No. I mean, that was — will we get that equipment back? I think
we will. There's gonna be some equipment on board we'll never get back since
it was destroyed by our own crew.
GIBSON: I'm curious. During all of that period of time, your dad knows China
very well.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Uh-huh.
GIBSON: Were you consulting with him about what was going on with the Chinese?
PRESIDENT BUSH: No. I think that, actually, the first time I ever discussed
China with him is after we'd resolved the issue. I'm pretty confident of that.
GIBSON: Have you ever, just occurred to me, have you ever … in the first 100
days consulted or called former President Clinton?
PRESIDENT BUSH: No. I haven't.
GIBSON: Do you talk to him?
PRESIDENT BUSH: No. I have not.
GIBSON: Don't feel the need?
PRESIDENT BUSH: No. If I need it I would, and I know he'd return my call. But
I have not.
GIBSON: On, you made the decision on arms sales to Taiwan.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Yes.
GIBSON: I'm curious if you, in your own mind, feel that if Taiwan were attacked
by China, do we have an obligation to defend the Taiwanese?
PRESIDENT BUSH: Yes, we do …
GIBSON: And …
PRESIDENT BUSH: and the Chinese must understand that. Yes, I would.
GIBSON: With the full force of American military?
PRESIDENT BUSH: Whatever it took to help Taiwan defend theirself.
GIBSON: You would. All right. Let me talk to you a little bit about the sense
of the presidency that you have. Your predecessor would use the presidency as
a bully pulpit a lot, on a number of issues, to make what points he wanted to
do.
GIBSON: In things like the school shootings that we've had since you are president
…
PRESIDENT BUSH: Uh-huh.
GIBSON: … and things like the unfortunate situations in Cincinnati.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Uh-huh.
GIBSON: Your statements were relatively short or perfunctory. Doesn't the president
have an obligation to speak out on, particularly school shootings, racial situations,
because that defines … who we are as a society.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Of course the president does, and there are some times when
the president's presence can make an enormous difference, and sometimes where
it might make the situation worse, and I'll pick and choose when that occurs.
I get involved in issues where I think I can make a difference, and I'm, you
know, certainly not camera-shy. But if I think my presence is gonna complicate
a situation, or try to hog the limelight from somebody who deserves credit,
you won't find me there.
GIBSON: Is that why you didn't go to Whidby Island? Your predecessor would have
been there. I suspect President Reagan. I suspect even your dad would have been
there.
PRESIDENT BUSH: I chose not to go because I wanted the, the moment to be between
the troops and their families.
GIBSON: Some columnists, columnists have talked to you about that as a sort
of return to modesty in the presidency. Some have talked about it as, well,
he just doesn't "get it" on some issues.
PRESIDENT BUSH: You know, if I tried to please all the people all the time,
I'd be an ineffective President.
GIBSON: Mr. President, do we know how sick is the heart of Dick Cheney?
PRESIDENT BUSH: Well, we know he's going to, we know that any time his, his
body says you may be having a problem, he's going to get it checked out, and
we know that he is, at least I know that he is an incredibly important contribution
to my administration and he seems healthy as can be. I see him every single
morning and he's as they say out West, "He's strong as all get-out."
GIBSON: Well, the first incident, December, I believe, there was some reluctance
on the part, indeed you made some comments to the press, did not talk about
the fact he'd had a heart attack. Later, his doctors said he had. The March
incident, the White House was calling it "precautionary." Doctors said it was
"urgent." There seem to be an effort to downplay the seriousness of his condition.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Oh, I don't think so. I mean, I think that if, if they're trying
to downplay the seriousness, any time he had any indication whatsoever, he'd
try to sneak into a hospital unnoticed, or he wouldn't even go. He takes his
health very seriously and I do as well. But he told me, first of all, when I
picked him, I knew he was, I knew that he had had a, a history. And, secondly,
he told me, if you pick me, you understand, I may end up back in the hospital,
be checked out. And at the slightest indication of anything wrong with my heart,
I'm going in, he said, and I said you got my support. But I'm not the least
bit concerned about my friend. He's eating right, he's sleeping well, he's exercising,
and he's making a huge contribution to this administration.
GIBSON: Is there a plan in place, should he be incapacitated?
PRESIDENT BUSH: I don't intend for him to become incapacitated.
GIBSON: Not gonna happen. One final question. In your heart of hearts, you've
now had the job for a 100 days. If you could pick one or the other, rather be
president or baseball commissioner?
PRESIDENT BUSH: President. Because this is a job where a president can affect
the attitude of the country. The president can, can make an enormous difference
in the lives of people. The president can set an example. The president can
encourage people, and it's got, it's got enormous impact on the life of our
country, and I'm so honored to hold the position. It's, it's an unbelievable
experience.
GIBSON: Mr. President, good to talk to you.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Thank you, sir.
GIBSON: Thank you.
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