Q But back to the U.N. role, I mean, you said the U.N. will help in the reconstruction effort. But others in the administration are on the record -- Secretary Rumsfeld, Secretary Powell have talked about having U.S. officials moving in and taking over various administrations or, you know, departments that still exist --
MR. FLEISCHER: Correct.
Q -- and not having the U.N. move in immediately and do that, versus what Prime Minister Blair has said.
MR. FLEISCHER: I don't think they said anything about not having the U.N. move in. As you know, the President made a statement in the Azores, which everybody -- that's the American position, and that is that there will be a role for the United Nations, exactly as I said, exactly as Secretary Rumsfeld and Secretary Powell have said, involving humanitarian aspects and reconstruction aspects.
Don't think for a second that means the United States will not continue to have the role that we are playing and the mission that we are moving forward on to help continue to provide for the Iraqi people as the security situation goes forward, as well as some type of civilian administration that reports to General Franks.
Q Finally, representatives from France, Russia and Germany today to talk about this very issue. Have there been any discussions between our government and theirs to -- about the U.N. role? Or are you strictly dealing with Blair?
MR. FLEISCHER: Secretary Powell met in Brussels with leaders of 23 nations -- I believe it was 23 -- from the European Union. And, of course, he met with his counterparts from several of those nations that you just mentioned, if not all. And the talks were described as very positive and productive. It's part of the international process.
But the central point remains that the future of Iraq, in the President's judgment, will be governed by the Iraqi people. Iraq can govern itself. The United States will have its presence there, because we will stay for as long as is necessary to provide the security and for the infrastructure to be protected and to be administered, until the point where the Iraqis can take it over entirely.
Q But that'll be the United States staying there, and not the U.N., until the Iraqis can take it over --
MR. FLEISCHER: No, but the U.N. -- exactly as I said, the U.N. will have a role. Sometimes we do things side-by-side.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/04/20030404-7.htmlWell, we are almost at the same juncture in history that we were in after the first gulf war. It was not "read my lips, no more taxes" that soured me about George H. Bush. We all know politicians lie about taxes. What soured me was when he made the post gulf war speeches about the NWO.
I reluctantly voted for George H. Bush. I reluctantly voted for Dole. However, I very enthusiastically voted for George W. and converted about 20 hardcore Democrats.
Bush has very good reasons to at least cut the dues of the UN and begin phasing them out. Bush needs to learn the lesson that you can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear. He tried to make the UN relevant in the first speech about irrelavance by giving $$$$$$ to UNESCO. Didn't work.
Now with Mexico as the president of the UN security council words just fail me. What a disgrace.