Posted on 04/17/2008 6:01:36 PM PDT by snugs
The President met with British Prime minister George Brown today at the White House.
The President and the First Lady participated in an award ceremony for the recipients of the President's Environmental Youth Awards.
This evening The President and the First lady are entertaining the Brown's at the White House earlier in the day Sarah Brown and Laura Bush participated in a tour of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's "The Honor of Your Company Is Requested: President Lincoln's Inaugural Ball" Exhibit..
Pray for President Bush -- Day 2772
Enjoy your visit to Sanity Island
QUOTE OF THE DAY
President Bush Participates in Joint Press Availability with Prime Minister Gordon Brown of the United Kingdom
Rose Garden
PRESIDENT BUSH: Thank you all. Mr. Prime Minister, welcome to the Rose Garden. Glad you're here. It's a beautiful day. I'm -- been a pleasure to welcome a good friend to the Oval Office, and had a good discussion.
Appreciate our special relationship with Britain, and I believe that the actions we've taken are making it stronger. We spent time talking about the terrorists and extremists. I would remind my fellow citizens that just days after the Prime Minister took office, his country was attacked by murderers and extremists. And he handled the situation brilliantly. Prime Minister Brown understands our enemies remain determined to strike our countries and to kill our people. He and I share a determination, a fierce determination, that these evil men must be stopped and that we can defeat their hateful ideology by the spreading of liberty and freedom.
We're working together in Iraq. I want to appreciate the sacrifice of the British troops, their families and the British people. During the recent fighting in the Basra province, our nation's coordinated our support for the Iraqi security forces as they took on extremists and criminals. Most thankful for the brilliance of the British helicopter crews that fired under courage and helped evacuate wounded Iraqi soldiers.
I talked to the Prime Minister about my meetings with General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker and why I made the decision I made about our troop levels in Iraq. Appreciate the fact that the Prime Minister briefed me on what the British commanders are saying about Iraq. The key thing there is that we're working very closely together, and that we're making progress.
Also talked about Afghanistan with the Prime Minister. Appreciate the 7,900 British troops that are serving bravely in that country. We talked about the very successful NATO summit that we just concluded in Romania. And we talked about our commitment to see to it that we succeed in Afghanistan.
Spent some time on Iran. Our position is clear that we're going to work together, along with other nations, to make it abundantly clear to the Iranian regime that they must not have the capability of developing a nuclear weapon.
We talked about Zimbabwe. And I appreciate Gordon Brown's strong position on that issue. And I appreciate the fact that he went to the United Nations and made it abundantly clear that which I feel, as well, which is, you can't have elections unless you're willing to put the results out. What kind of election is it if you not let the will of the people be known?
I appreciate those in the region who have spoken out on this issue. Appreciate the fact that some in the region have spoken out against violence. More leaders in the region need to speak out. And the United Nations and the AU must play an active role in resolving the situation in Zimbabwe.
We shared our deep concern about the people in Darfur. And I -- I share frustrations that the United Nations-AU peacekeeping force is slow in arriving. I made the decision not to put our troops in there on the expectation that the United Nations, along with the AU, could be effective -- and they haven't been as effective as they should be, and we'll continue to work to help them.
We talked about our joint desire to train health care workers in Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique and Zambia, as well as our continued effort to confront disease, whether it be malaria and HIV/AIDS.
And then of course we spent time on our economy -- ies. (Laughter.) That would be two economies. (Laughter.) We first spent some time on the global financial markets, and then we spent time talking about what each of us are doing in our respective countries to deal with our financial circumstances. We spent some time on trade. The worst signal we could send during this global uncertainty is that the world is going to become more protectionist and less willing to open up markets. And I want to thank Gordon Brown for his strong belief that the Doha Rounds ought to proceed. I agree with you, sir, and believe we can make good progress toward that end.
We talked about the climate change issue. I gave a speech right here in the Rose Garden yesterday. I don't know whether any of our press corps read it, but it was a far-reaching speech that talked about our commitment to deal with the issue in such a way that we can develop technologies without wrecking our economy. And it was in clear recognition that unless countries like China and India are at the table, any agreement is not going to work. And I assured the Prime Minister that by the time the G8 comes, we will work hard to make sure we can reach an international consensus that will be effective.
All in all, we had a fabulous conversation. I'm looking forward to dinner tonight. The Prime Minister is bringing his wife Sarah up here to the White House. And I'm -- Laura and I are going to cook you up a meal. (Laughter.) Well, we'll eat one with you. (Laughter.) Thanks for coming. PRIME MINISTER BROWN: Thank you very much, Mr. President. Let me first of all thank you for your warm welcome, for your hospitality, and for your offer to cook the meal this evening. (Laughter.) And let me thank you most of all for your leadership. The world owes President George Bush a huge debt of gratitude for leading the world in our determination to root out terrorism, and to ensure that there is no safe haven for terrorism and no hiding place for terrorists.
It's my profound belief that over many decades, no international partnership has served the world better than the special relationship between our two countries, the United States and the United Kingdom. And following our excellent meeting, I'm able to report that the bond between our two countries is stronger than ever.
From the darkest days of the Second World War, when the strongest transatlantic partnership was forged to defend freedom, to the challenges we face together against terrorism in every part of the world, our alliance will remain strong and steadfast in standing for freedom and for justice. And we will continue to work together with the strenuous efforts we are making together in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Today we agreed our determination that in advance of the July G8 meeting in Japan, where all the major economies will meet together, we will do everything in our power to ensure economic stability and growth. We should be vigilant in maintaining the proactive approach to monetary and fiscal policy to enable our economies to resume their paths of upward growth. We want all our international partners to do the same. To ensure greater confidence in the financial system, all countries should ensure the immediate implementation of the plans for transparency and disclosure and risk management agreed by our finance ministers.
We agreed to work, and President Bush has just referred to this, for an early world trade deal that will give new confidence to the international economy at this time. An enhanced dialogue between oil consumers and oil producers, with rising output from the oil-producing countries, should help stabilize and then cut the price of oil, now at over $110 a barrel.
We want to work with the World Bank and agricultural producers to enhance food supply, tackle food shortages, and increase agricultural production. And both Britain and America are taking action to help the housing market for homeowners and those who want to buy their homes for the first time.
President Bush and I also talked about an agreed new work programs between our two governments on development. And let me acknowledge the pioneering work of President Bush's administration in tackling on the African continent HIV/AIDS and addressing the scandal of avoidable deaths from malaria.
We agreed to work together, as President Bush has just said, to increase the number of doctors, nurses and midwives in Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique and Zambia -- a down payment which, if extended to the whole of Africa, would lead to one-and-a-half million more health service, health care workers.
At the same time, the professionalism and commitment of our brave forces serving alongside America with determination in Iraq and Afghanistan was a subject of much of our discussions. We praise the commitment of the troops of both America and Britain and all who serve in these two countries. And we believe that our program of overwatch in Basra in the south of Iraq is making substantial progress. At the same time, we've agreed at the NATO summit in Bucharest measures that we can take so that we match the military effort in Afghanistan with proposals that will enable economic and social development of that country. America and Britain have the first and second largest number of forces in both these countries, and we are determined on the success of our missions.
We reiterated our command stand on Darfur, and we want to see talks from the rebels and the government working together. We reiterated our common stand also on Burma, where it is important to repeat the call for reconciliation. And on the situation in Zimbabwe, President Bush has made a strong statement that I entirely endorse, calling for full democratic rights of the Zimbabwean people to be respected, and that elections that happen have got to be not only reported but be fair and be seen to be fair in the interest of democracy, not just in Zimbabwe but the reputation of democracy throughout Africa and the world.
We have repeated our common commitments in the fight against terrorism, and will continue to work together at every level to defeat terrorism wherever it is. Iran continues to defy the will of the international community, and we are agreed on the need to strengthen the sanctions regime and ensure that these sanctions are effectively implemented. I will be talking to my European colleagues in the next few days about how we can move forward with both these issues throughout Europe. And we want to extend measures to include investment in liquefied national [sic] gas.
We also discussed climate change, following President Bush's announcement yesterday. And we agreed we must work internationally to secure progress at the G8 and towards a post-Kyoto deal on climate change.
President, this is an ambitious agenda that we share together. It can only be achieved by closer cooperation that will happen over these next few months. I look forward to continuing to work with President Bush and his administration in taking it forward. And thank you for your warm welcome and hospitality.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY
President Bush and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown walk from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Thursday, April 17, 2008, to take part in a joint news conference in the Rose Garden.
President Bush and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown arrive for a news conference in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington April 17, 2008
President George W. Bush (2nd R) and first lady Laura Bush (2nd L) welcome Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown (L) and his wife Sarah at the North Portico at the White House in Washington April 17, 2008
Hi
President Bush and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown arrive for a news conference in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington April 17, 2008
President Bush shakes hands with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown after taking part in a joint news conference, Thursday, April 17, 2008, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington.
President George W. Bush (R) and Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown leave a joint news conference in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington April 17, 2008 and head back to the Oval Office.
President Bush makes remarks to recipients of the President's Environmental Youth Awards, Thursday, April 17, 2008, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington.
President Bush jokes with members of the audience after making a statement in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Thursday, April 17, 2008, to recipients of the President's Environmental Youth Awards.
President Bush and first lady Laura Bush pose with the recipients of the President's Environmental Youth Award, The Wiser Misers Energy Team from Huntingdon, Tenn. Thursday, April 17, 2008, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington.
First lady Laura Bush walks from the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Thursday, April 17, 2008, after attending an event with President Bush and the recipients of the President?s Environmental Youth Awards.
President Bush waves as he heads into the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Thursday, April 17, 2008, after making remarks in the Rose Garden with recipients of the President's Environmental Youth Awards.
greetings snugs from Pennsylvania
Thanks for the ping
President Bush and first lady Laura Bush stand at the North Portico of the White House as they wait for British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his wife Sarah Brown, Thursday, April 17, 2008, in Washington.
President George W. Bush (3nd R) and first lady Laura Bush (2nd R) welcome Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown (R) and his wife Sarah at the North Portico at the White House in Washington April 17, 2008.
President George W. Bush (L) is saluted by a Marine after welcoming Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown at the North Portico of the White House in Washington, April 17, 2008
President George W. Bush and first lady Laura Bush wait to welcome Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his wife Sarah at the North Portico of the White House in Washington, April 17, 2008.
President George W. Bush (2nd R) and first lady Laura Bush (2nd L) welcome Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown (L) and his wife Sarah at the North Portico at the White House in Washington April 17, 2008
President Bush, center, and first lady Laura Bush, left, greet British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his wife, Sarah Brown, right, at the North Portico of the White House, Thursday, April 17, 2008, in Washington.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown of the United Kingdom, remarks during a joint press availability Thursday, April 17, 2008, in the Rose Garden of the White House. Said Prime Minister Brown, "The world owes President George Bush a huge debt of gratitude for leading the world in our determination to root out terrorism, and to ensure that there is no safe haven for terrorism and no hiding place for terrorists." White House photo by Joyce N. Boghosian
Prime Minister Gordon Brown of the United Kingdom, and President George W. Bush break out in laughter as they respond to a reporter's questions Thursday, April 17, 2008, during a joint press availability at the White House. White House photo by Joyce N. Boghosian
President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Gordon Brown hold their joint press availability Thursday, April 17, 2008, in the Rose Garden of the White House. White House photo by Noah Robinowitz
President George W. Bush addresses recipients of the President's Environmental Youth Awards during a ceremony Thursday, April 17, 2008, in the Rose Garden of the White House. Established in 1971, the awards recognize students from grades K-12 who have led environmental efforts in their communities. The awards are administered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and each of the EPA's 10 regional offices selects a winner or group of winners. White House photo by Shealah Craighead
Mrs. Laura Bush and Mrs. Sarah Brown, wife of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, participate in a tour led by Mr. Charles Robertson, Guest Curator, "The Honor of Your Company Is Requested: President Lincoln's Inaugural Ball" Exhibit, Thursday, April 17, 2008, during their visit to the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C. White House photo by Shealah Craighead
Mrs. Laura Bush is joined by Mrs. Sarah Brown, wife of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and Lady Sheinwald, wife of the British Ambassador to the United States, as they participate in a tour of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's "The Honor of Your Company Is Requested: President Lincoln's Inaugural Ball" Exhibit Thursday, April 17, 2008, in Washington, D.C. Their tour is lead by Mr. Charles Robertson, Guest Curator, "The Honor of Your Company Is Requested: President Lincoln's Inaugural Ball." White House photo by Shealah Craighead
President George W. Bush and Laura Bush welcome British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his wife, Sarah Brown, to the White House Thursday evening, April 17, 2008, for a private social dinner. White House photo by Shealah Craighead
Great pics. Great President and first lady.
Thank you so very much for all the wonderful pictures today, Snugs.....I do enjoy them so much. Our President is so friendly with everyone, he never sees a stranger....what a genuine person he is! I am already missing him...~~sniff~~
snugs: Thank you for posting the DOSE tonight — GREAT WORK!
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MUST SEE . . .
CSPAN WILL RE-BROADCAST THE BUSH-BROWN PRESS CONFERENCE AT 10:50 PM EDT
(If you can believe their schedule?!)
http://inside.c-spanarchives.org:8080/cspan/schedule.csp?
MY FAVORITE QUOTE FROM THE PRESS CONFERENCE:
Brown: “And let me thank you most of all for your leadership. The world owes President George Bush a huge debt of gratitude for leading the world in our determination to root out terrorism, and to ensure that there is no safe haven for terrorism and no hiding place for terrorists.”
“Our President is so friendly with everyone, he never sees a stranger....what a genuine person he is! I am already missing him...~~sniff~~”
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I couldn’t agree more!
Congratulations toaster winner
Thank you
My pleasure
Maybe I’m just a fashion curmudgeon, but I think that after a certain age, women should not wear skirts above the knee, unless they have really great knees. Unfortunately Sarah Brown doesn’t fit into that category. ;o)
Thank you DrDeb, for the schedule...I got in on the tail-end of the press conference!
I expect there will be lots of teary eyes the day he takes off from the White House for the last time! We know that mine and yours will be teary!!
I agree and I would take out the word after a certain age I think that many teens who are on the heavy side should not wear short tighter skirts but certainly in Britain you see many of them doing so.
That outfit IMHO makes Sarah Brown look frumpy, the one she wore earlier in the day was much more kind to her.
:0)
Thank you snugs.. this is the first time I recall seeing Sarah Brown. She is a tall gal .. looks to be my height actually
Which outfit did you think made her look frumpy? I see teh white jacket & red jacket outfits & both look decent to me.. I might be missing something
I am pretty tired.. .. need sleep.. big day tomorrow..
Unofficial Ruling: It's a pretty low cut neckline for the event, as well.
Hmm...perhaps she couldn't afford Al Gore's clothing consultant. ...OR...We are spoiled with such a woman of taste and class, in the White House.
Keep helping your countrymen come to the light ;-)
It's not just shorter skirts, though that drives me nuts, too. I see so many girls who are wearing the low slung pants, with tight fitting shirts, and they have noticeable bulges over the waistband of the pants on front and sides. I guess they think they're 'all that', but I think it just looks tacky. And what's funny is that the girl doesn't even have to be very heavy to look like this!
That's for sure! It seems that all the women in this Administration always dress in tasteful clothing, either professionally or casually. Condi Rice and Dana Perino are two very good examples of this.
Thank you for today’s marvelous photos. Our amazing President Bush keeps an incredible schedule.
I would say the outfit is very similar to the ones I saw a lot last Christmas at the hotel where we had our Christmas Party (dinner dance). So I suppose if it is considered OK to wear something like that at a 5 star hotel she probably thinks it is OK to wear that at a reception at the White House. Bad move in my opinion but maybe I am just being a bit old fashion I know there are certain times when I feel that shirts and dresses should be worn instead of the trousers that seem to be worn by so many women today.
I agree you have got to be pencil thin to get away with very tigh and low slung trousers shirts that fashionable nowadays.
B) What...does this mean that you, too, do not like Hillary's exceptionally ugly pantsuits? /sarc
Nite all!
Thank You....(P.S. I think I posted first, a few seconds before Kaslin !!!)
I visit almost daily, just don't post often.
We quiet ones in Pennsylvania are just usually FORGOTTEN and OVER LOOKED but not BITTER.
Good Morning, just checked out our morning news paper and guess who is coming to town today, Friday , April 18th!!!
BILL CLINTON, the former President. Mr. Obama must have them really worried...President GWB. has been the ONLY President or former President to visit Somerset, PA. and here comes Bill today... (as Rush would say “yip, yip, yip, yahoo!!!)
Guess I stay home today and do my grocery shopping tomorrow...have a great one over the ocean, friend.
I guess I am in the minority but I liked the way Mrs. Brown dressed. Her daytime red and black outfit was great and she wears high heels very well. JMO. Perhaps the evening outfit just did not photograph well.
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