Posted on 06/11/2002 4:20:01 PM PDT by TheOtherOne
Bush Pledges Fight Against Evil AP White House Corespondent
Published: Jun 11, 2002
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"Evil is evil, and we will fight it with all our might," the president said.
Bush issued his pledge while urging Congress to create a Homeland Security Department that would absorb scores of agencies and departments. Some lawmakers are questioning why Bush does not want the FBI and CIA to be more accountable to the new department.
Before returning to Washington, the president headlined a $500,000 fund-raiser - with most of the money going to the GOP campaign of former Rep. Jim Talent, whose race against Democratic Sen. Jean Carnahan could determine control of the Senate next year.
In his remarks on homeland defense, Bush touched on his pledge to act - pre-emptively, if necessary - to prevent America from being threatened by weapons of mass destruction.
"I've made it clear that we'll use all tools at our disposal," Bush said. "One thing we are going to do is to defend the American people, and make sure that these terrorist networks don't hook up with these nations that harbor bad designs on us and at the same time develop the worst kind of weapons."
Bush has made it clear that Iraq is his biggest concern, and has shrugged off U.S. allies' objections to military action.
"When we see evil, I know it may hurt some people's feelings, it may not be what they call diplomatically correct, but I'm calling evil for what it is. Evil is evil, and we will fight it with all our might," Bush said, without specifically mentioning Iraq.
He acknowledged intelligence lapses at the FBI prior to the Sept. 11 attacks.
"I wasn't surprised that the FBI wasn't fully prepared for the war against terror. Because after all, the FBI's major job up until Sept. 11 was to make cases against people who committed crimes already in America. White collar crimes, spies. They really weren't focused on preventing attacks. And so we needed to change the culture," Bush said.
"The other thing we are doing a better job of is having the CIA, which collects information overseas, coordinate with the FBI," the president said.
Bush noted that FBI Director Robert Mueller and CIA Director George Tenet now brief him jointly.
His plans for the new department include a division that would analyze intelligence from the CIA, FBI, National Security Agency and others, but without any direct authority over the gathering of the information.
In a speech at Oak Park High School in Kansas City, Bush said, "We'll have people whose job it is to analyze everything we see and assess everything we hear. And to make sure it's all in one area, so we can get a clearer picture of what may or may not be happening to America."
Before flying to Missouri, Bush met with Republicans and Democratic lawmakers to seek their support. Several questioned why the CIA and FBI wouldn't be more accountable to the new department under Bush's plan.
Leaving the White House, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle said the issue is one of several the Senate must review in detail "so that at some point in the not-too-distant future we're able to answer them with greater confidence than we can today."
To highlight one of the nation's many vulnerable spots, Bush toured a water treatment facility near the affluent Kansas City neighborhood of Briar Cliff. The plant grounds are protected only by a rusty chain-link fence that abuts a busy city street.
Still, the president assured the crowd, "This one didn't appear very vulnerable."
A key goal of the Bush White House is to overturn the Democrats' one-vote majority in the Senate, and the Missouri race is among the nation's most closely contested.
The fund-raising stop allows the White House to split the cost of the trip between taxpayers and Talent's campaign.
AP-ES-06-11-02 1834EDT
Hopefully an intentional misspelling.
I know he's a busy fella, but if he'd do that on the national level, he would be the greatest president that ever lived - IMO.
... which is sometime this year.
Personally, I don't think she looks a day older than 132.
What is the basis for this allegation? Why is Mr. Fournier "evil".
Helen comes to mind.
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