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Strengthening the Economy: Jobs and Economic Growth
Economy and Budget Press Briefing Excerpts

Excerpts from Press Briefing by Ari Fleischer, October 1, 2002 (Full transcript)

QUESTION: Ari, as the President goes out and campaigns in these final weeks and raise money for Republican candidates, is he getting any message from those Republicans back in the states to tailor his message more towards the economy and less toward the war?

MR. FLEISCHER: Well, you're on the trail for the President, and so I think it's fair for you to say that there are many events at which the President does -- the fundraisers, of course, are before Republican groups. Many of his other events, the public events, are before wide-open groups, people from all parties, and even people who have no party. And the President's message is the same, and I think it's well received. The President has been focusing very strongly, just as you saw today, on the economy, on domestic issues.

The President hopes that Congress, in the short amount of time it has left, won't neglect the domestic agenda. And one way to tell if Congress is going to take action or neglect the domestic agenda is whether or not they pass terrorism insurance and create those jobs the President cited. So he does what a President should do, and that's focus on both international affairs and domestic.