Lawrence Ari Fleischer

“ The President is not concerned about his image, the President is concerned about results. And the President's results on the environment represent a balanced approach to protecting America's environment, just what he said he would do during the campaign. ”

“ And you're hearing the manifestation of that as each of these regulations comes up for review. But again, I want to remind you of the initiatives that the President has launched on his own. The Land and Water Conservation Fund increase and the elimination of the backlog at the national parks are major developments in helping the American people enjoy our natural resources in this country. Those are no small efforts. When you think about the interaction most Americans have with the environment, very often it is their visits to our national parks. ”

“ It's just a reality of the regulatory scheme that was left behind by the previous administration. The President has received that inheritance, and he's dealt with it forthrightly. In some cases, the appropriate cabinet officials have reviewed the regulations and made determinations that these regulations should proceed. They are in the nation's best interest. They're based on science. They're good for the environment, they're good for the country. ”

“ Eliminating the backlog at our national parks, which has been a vexing problem for millions of Americans who use our national parks. There is insufficient upkeep at the parks. The President has, for the first time, proposed a budget that, unlike the previous administration which didn't propose it, the President proposed a budget that will fully eliminate the backlog of maintenance requests at our national parks. ”

“ The President is proud to involve stakeholders in decisions that will be made about the environment -- for example, the national monument designation that the President and the administration have left in place. ”

“ And the President will continue to make his case that the greatest risk to the surplus and to economic vitality comes from blowing the budget through bigger spending. Q Are you sure that they're going to have a conference on this? Because apparently, the Senate can't agree on how many people to send to a conference, and so they haven't conferenced anything. MR. FLEISCHER: Well, without a conference, there is no budget. So clearly there will be a conference. But they still have some areas they need to agree to. And that's an internal Senate question, about who the conferees will be. ”

“ And that means that it is not dependent from one administration to the next, as much as it is dependent on the actions taken by the parties involved in the Middle East. And the President has sent a very clear message that the United States will continue to play a helpful and constructive role. But the key to securing lasting peace in the Middle East depends on the actions taken by Israel, the Palestinian Authorities and others in the region. Q Does the President believe that Israel has gone too far in its recent actions? ”

“ That is one of the most important ways the American people interact with nature. And the President is very pleased to be able to be the first President to take that step, which he announced in the campaign, which was part of his budget. And he will continue to push for that in the negotiations with Congress on the budget. Q Ari, since you're painting the White House so green ahead of Earth Day here, where is the President going with the roadless areas rule? MR. FLEISCHER: I don't have any information on that today, John. It will come out of the agencies whenever their review is complete. ”

“ The President was faced with a difficult choice between his alma mater and the White House Correspondents Association, and I'll leave it to you all to decide what the right answer is. (Laughter.) Q Ari, on the Free Trade Area of the Americas, has the President been encouraged with the Minority Leader of the Democrats, of the House, about the trade promotion authority in the last few days, and there is also an accusation by the President of AFL-CIO saying since the President took the office, he has been calling him, and the President never called him back. ”

“ And one of the biggest frustrations the American people have said is they visit the parks and they can't park, they're too crowded, that there is a backup, that the facilities are not adequately maintained. ”

“ The agenda includes discussion of the return of the airplane; an explanations from the United States on how we view the accident -- the cause of the accident; how to avoid future accidents in the future; and the United States delegation will also ask, as I indicated previously, tough questions about the manner in which the Chinese have been intercepting our reconnaissance aircraft. Q You're saying the Chinese don't set the agenda, that each side comes with its own? MR. FLEISCHER: Clearly. Q Ari, last -- final question. Last one, I promise. Q Ever? Q No, just today. ”

“ A series of announcements to begin today. The President intends to nominate Michael J. Garcia to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Enforcement. The President intends to nominate Mary Sheila Gall to be Chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. ”

“ And that was something that the Clinton administration decided not to enforce, at the very end. Is this one of those Clinton things that's under review? MR. FLEISCHER: I'd have to check on that. Failure to enforce is not the same as promulgation of a new regulation. So let me take a look at that and get back to you on that. Q On the Middle East, Ari, you're asking for withdrawal. Now some Israeli officials are talking about withdrawal in months, maybe years today. ”