Lawrence Ari Fleischer

“ We are a nation that is principally reliant for every flip of the switch, for every use of an air- conditioner, for every drive of a car -- almost every drive of a car -- on fossil fuels. That does represent the largest amount of energy use in America. ”

“ And upon the announcement of a comprehensive policy, markets will see, and consumers will see, that this administration is serious about helping protect people from high prices for gasoline and for energy. And that helps create an environment for prices to go down, for supplies to go up, and for people to have the energy and the gas they need. ”

“ If throwing money at education were the solution, our schools would have been improved a long time ago. So the President supports additional funding for the schools coupled with reforms that focus on accountability, testing so that parents can know if their children are indeed learning, that schools are succeeding. But the solution is not just to throw money at it, the solution is that reasonable increases in spending for schools, coupled with meaningful reform. Q So is it reasonable what's going on in the Senate at this point? ”

“ Keith, it's not taking money, it's so people can solve their own problems. That money is not the government's to throw, that's the people's money to keep. Q But you're very clearly suggesting that that's something they could spend money on. Wouldn't that actually maintain the whole problem by keeping prices high? MR. FLEISCHER: What I said is that the power of tax relief is people can use it for purposes as they deem best and as they see fit. There will be some families who are going to use that money to pay for the higher cost of energy. ”

“ The President's view is that here has to be a return to equilibrium between supply and demand. That way, consumers can have reliable energy at an affordable price, and that our nation's infrastructure can be modernized and that supply can be brought on-line. ”

“ There are going to be other families -- because of the choices they make, not the government -- that will use that money to invest, to save. Other people are going to use it to pay off their credit card bill, as I indicated. ”

“ This is a plan that I think people are going to recognize as some serious work by the government to solve an important problem. To that degree that people who become convinced that there will be greater conservation and there will be increased supply, that has an effect on markets. ”

“ It's also important, in the President's opinion, that the United States develop its own energy resources so we're not reliant on decisions that are made by foreign governments. Q So the international initiatives really don't deal with new drilling. ”

“ He does not believe that anybody should pay more than one-third of their income to the federal government. And that is the position that he supports. Q Ari, following on what Terry was saying, is the President sympathetic with the idea that the oil industry went through some pretty lean years in the mid-1990s and they need to have some substantial profits in order to engage in exactly the type of exploration, development and infrastructure rebuilding that the President believes they need to undertake? ”

“ That's the beauty of tax relief. It's targeted to the needs that people find most important in their lives. The government doesn't have to tell people how to spend their money; people know best how to spend it, themselves. Q Ari, what opportunities does the President have to review the report before embracing all of his recommendations? ”

“ The President is pleased at the fact that he has broken the pattern in Washington where finally the issue is being taken seriously, is leading members of Congress to offer their ideas and more proposals. So it depends on what she offers. Q Ari, this international initiative, is the President trying to deal with some drilling in some areas that really don't have infrastructure? Like, for instance, today Charles Rangel outside was talking about the fact that Africa can help with these oil prices, especially the Nigeria area. ”

“ I have read some of them -- for example, one of the wires carried a story that cited somebody from one of the major environmental groups who came in and met with the staff of the energy group. Q What about -- they were complaining in The New York Times today that they met with the staff and not the Vice President, and the people that we just saw in the last couple of days have met with the Vice President. MR. FLEISCHER: There's no shortage of people in every business who want to meet with the President or the Vice President. The White House tries to be as accommodating as possible. ”

“ And upon taking office, he immediately created this energy group to get it done. And today he will receive the report from the energy group, and tomorrow he will announce it. It's a sign of the fact that the President does understand just how severe this problem is, and he wants to make sure the American people don't have to pay sky-high prices because of a lack of an energy policy. Q He also pledged last March to roll back the gasoline tax. ”

“ It has many purposes, it solves many people's problems. Q A lot of negotiators on Capitol Hill will say that you guys didn't want the full $100 billion because it's going to force you to trim back on other parts of the original tax plan. ”