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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
June 21, 2006
President and Mrs. Bush Participate in Roundtable with Foreign Students
Austrian National Library
Vienna, Austria
U.S.-EU Summit
4:33 P.M. (Local)
THE PRESIDENT: It's always important to wait on your wife.
(Laughter.) Please sit down. Here's what we're going to do. I'm going
to give a statement, then answer a couple of questions. Then we'll get
the press out of here and have a dialogue. Is that okay? Yes. Let
them get set up. This will take a little bit of time and then we'll --
First of all, I want to thank our Ambassador for setting this up.
And thank you all very much for joining Laura and me. We're the parents
of 25-year-old twin daughters who have dreams and aspirations just like
I'm sure you do. And one of the things that I hope we're able to
accomplish today is I want to learn about you and your dreams and
aspirations, and I want you to ask me questions about our country and
the decision-making process that I go through. I'll answer any question
you have.
I just want to assure you of one thing, that I believe that freedom
is universal. I don't think freedom is just a right for American
citizens, I don't think it's just a right for people who practice
religion one way. I think it is the right of everybody, who lives
everywhere. I believe that free societies end up yielding peace and
hope. And that's the cornerstone of my foreign policy.
I've had to make some very difficult decisions, as you know, and I
made the decisions based upon what I think is in the best interest of my
country, the security of my country. But I also believe the decisions I
have made will end up helping people realize the great blessings of
liberty. I believe people ought to be able to worship freely, or not
worship at all, but you're equally a citizen of the world. I believe
that poverty and hopelessness in the spirit can be changed. I believe
the United States has got an obligation to help others.
And we're doing so. We've got a very robust foreign policy. One
part of the foreign policy you hear about is, obviously, my
determination to defend ourselves. But we're also actively working with
people who are suffering from HIV/AIDS in Africa. I'm deeply concerned
about the Sudan and the situation in Darfur. I believe that it's very
important for the United States to work with friends and allies to
accomplish our objectives.
And so the purpose of my visit here to Vienna has been to work with
my European Union counterparts to join in a common alliance for the good
of mankind. And so, thank you for giving me a chance to come by and
visit. I'll answer a couple of questions. If anybody has any thoughts
or questions and wants to be the lead-off person, please step up and do
so. Don't be shy. (Laughter.) Any questions or thoughts?
Yes, sir. Please. State where you're from so everybody knows.
Q Mr. President, Mrs. Bush, and Ambassador McCaw, I just wanted
-- first of all, I wanted to say that I'm really honored to have been
given this opportunity to participate in this breathtaking occasion. I
would like -- first of all, I would like to give thanks to Ambassador
McCaw for the very friendly invitation to the embassy and for choosing
me as a student of this country that has been chosen here, among so many
countries in the world. And want to thank also President Bush, American
government, and the American people, especially, for giving a continuous
contribution and help to a country that was having, and is having, a
tough time. Therefore, I have reason to believe that tough times never
last, that tough people do.
THE PRESIDENT: Do you mind if I use that sometime? (Laughter.)
Q It's not original from me. So long live America and its
people. And thank you. And the following question is concerning my
country. So I would like to ask you, since the people of Kosovo has put
its trust to America, and since the people of Kosovo believe in American
power and American democracy, what will the American contribution be for
the independence of Kosovo? And furthermore, to what extent is America
as a superpower -- to what extent is it ready to take on burden and
responsibility for solving the problem of Kosovo and to contribute in
its progress and democracy, economy and education and freedom?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, thank you very much. Is it Niser (phonetic)
-- Niser is from Kosovo. And yours is a country which is a part of the
world which has got our attention. As you know, we've got U.S. troops
stationed there with the intention of helping provide stability so that
there can be a peaceful resolution to the issues between Serbia and
Kosovo.
We believe that dialogue between Serbia and those who aspire for an
independent country in Kosovo need to be ongoing, in such a way that
there is a resolution that meets the needs of the majority, and at the
same time, enhances minority rights inside Kosovo. To this end, we're
working with our European partners to try to just bring a sense of
stability and a sense of calm so that a rational solution can be worked
out, and so that the people, the Kosovars can realize dreams.
The ultimate political solution is going to require a buy-in by
both sides. And I think the proper role of the United States is to
encourage this kind of dialogue. The Prime Minister of Serbia will be
coming to the United States shortly and we will work with him to urge
him to listen to the needs of the Kosovars, and at the same time, assure
him that our policy is to guarantee minority rights.
Thank you for your question.
One of the things that -- you asked what else we can do. One of
the things that is very important for our country is to have exchanges
with students such as yourself. I hope that some of you, as you
consider your future, will come to the United States to study. And the
reason why I say that is because I want you to get to see America the
way it is, not the way necessarily sometimes it's portrayed through a
robust and free media around the world. You'll find the people there
to be very understanding, very respectful of traditions. After all, we
are a country of immigrants. One of the interesting things about our
country is that we've been able to accept people from around the world
and, as a result of common values and -- that people become Americans.
And it is that capacity to help people assimilate into our society that
I'd like for you to see firsthand. I think you'll find there to be a
very open society, one that honors freedom for all.
Yes, ma'am. Where are you from?
Q Hello -- I'm from Kosovo, as well. And first of all, I can
say it's an honor to meet you, the President, the First Lady, and the
Ambassador McCaw. Mr. President, I want to wholeheartedly thank you,
your government, and the people of the United States for working for a
stable, free and democratic Kosovo and the region.
I wanted to say one thing. The intervention of 1999, of the
American troops along with NATO partners has enabled me to be a
participant today at this roundtable. Otherwise, most of all, I would
have had the tragic fate of my father, a prominent university professor
and minister of agriculture, as well, who was murdered in the war.
I have two questions. For Mr. President, do you believe that an
independent Kosovo will attract foreign investments, consequently,
improve the economy and enable Kosovo to slowly gain financial
independence, by supporting their infrastructure and slowly decreasing
the need for international financial aid?
And the other question goes to Mrs. Bush. Can you please describe
a family day at the White House? (Laughter.)
THE PRESIDENT: Let me start, please. No matter what government I
talk about, in order to attract capital there must be some basic
considerations -- first of all, rule of law. In order for there to be
capital and investment in any society, people have to be assured that
their investment will be treated fairly, and therefore, there has to be
consistent and constant law. What you can't do is have contracts, for
example, that are broken -- summarily broken, without an adequate court
system to protect that kind of investment.
Secondly, in order for people to feel comfortable investing there
has to be a society which shuns corruption. Capital looks at a country
and says, well, maybe my money will end up being stolen, or maybe I have
to bribe my way in, or maybe I have to make concessions in order to get
my capital to be properly invested, and therefore, it's important that
any society that wants to attract capital must have strong
anti-corruption measures.
Thirdly, capital needs a rate of return. In other words, if
somebody invests in a society they expect there to be a return on their
investment. And that means rational tax policy and monetary policy by
the host government. What I'm saying to you is, is that there are
certain just basic standards that must be met in order to attract
capital. On the other hand, you're absolutely right, the investment
into a society far outweighs the grants and aid, for example. A society
that's capable of handling investment in a proper way is a society which
will grow and prosper and enable people to be able to realize dreams.
The word I like to use in America is "entrepreneurial spirit." And
how do you enhance that entrepreneurial spirit? Well, you do it through
good law, good practice, and anti-corruption.
MRS. BUSH: Okay, a day at -- a typical day at the White House.
Well, I'll give you a workday first. We get up about 5:30 a.m. -- the
President gets up and goes in and gets the coffee and brings it back to
me in bed. (Laughter.) Very nice of him.
THE PRESIDENT: Record that, please. (Laughter.)
MRS. BUSH: Then, we have three animals that get up at the same
time and they have to go out -- two dogs and a cat. The cat actually
doesn't have to go out, but the two dogs do. So then we read the
newspapers and drink coffee until we finally get up. We eat breakfast
about 6:30 a.m. The President goes to work at the West Wing, which is
right there -- we live where we work. It's sort of like living above
the shop -- and goes to the West Wing to work at 7:00 a.m.
Usually, I don't go to work until later, around 9:00 a.m., unless
I'm traveling in the U.S. The President's offices are in the West Wing
of the White House; my offices are in the East Wing. And my
Chief-of-Staff happens to be here with me, right now, Anita McBride. I
think there are about 18 people on my staff, and we -- I have a lot of
initiatives that we're working on.
We travel the country to work on issues that have to do with what
we can do to help young people, especially boys, because right now boys
in the United States are not going to college -- not as many boys go to
college. More boys drop out of school, more boys, obviously, get in
trouble and are arrested. So we have an initiative that we've been
working on where I visit programs around the country that help young
people.
Sometimes we meet with -- at the same time that I'm meeting with
people -- I meet with Afghan teachers, for instance, that are being
trained in the United States -- and the President, of course, is meeting
with world leaders over there in the West Wing; also going out and
traveling. And then, usually about 5:30 p.m. or 6:00 p.m., we're back
in the residence of the White House.
We have dinner. A lot of times our girls come over to have dinner
with us. One of them was just living with us, but she just has moved
out. The other one lives in an apartment and is teaching school, she's
a 3rd-grade schoolteacher. So sometimes they'll come over and have
dinner with us. Sometimes we'll watch a movie in the White House
theater. But we do go to bed early. And so that's sort of the typical
day.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all.
END 4:38 P.M. (Local)
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