Press Briefing by Press Secretary Ari Fleischer, June 6, 2001

by Lawrence Ari Fleischer

Aboard Air Force One
En Route Bedford City, Virginia

11:18 A.M. EDT

MR. FLEISCHER: (in progress) -- almost entirely on a tribute to those who died on D-Day. It will be a real -- speech. It will be -- there will be a short reference to transatlantic ties. That will be part of the speech that is in honor to those who died.

Q What about the story this morning? You started to mention the emphasis on global warming.

MR. FLEISCHER: We'll let you know, Ann, if there is anything.

Q -- there was a meeting yesterday.

MR. FLEISCHER: The working group is working on -- recommendations. Some form or another --

Q Any other words from the President on Europe?

MR. FLEISCHER: -- newsmaking speech.

Q Congratulations on getting her to brief on camera and on the record. On the record, that's appreciated.

Q What are the venues when we get in -- anything on Thursday or Friday -- in Europe? Or do you think it may be the radio address?

MR. FLEISCHER: No, it would be Monday if there's anything to be -- well, I'll get to that on week-ahead time. That's just to be determined.

Q That event on Friday morning in Des Moines, is that a follow-up to the Thursday signing?

MR. FLEISCHER: Friday in Iowa, he's going there for two reasons. One is it was in Iowa where he originally announced his tax proposal, in late 1999. So the President thinks it's appropriate to go back to the place where it all began. Two, it will be on a farm where he talked about abolishing the death taxes during the Iowa caucuses, and now that he has abolished the death tax, the legislation he will sign abolishes the death tax, he wants to return to a farm that will be affected.

Q Is he going to mention the fact that it's abolished and that it's sunsetted?

MR. FLEISCHER: Well, actually, I was just reading something we talked about this morning -- if you look at a lot of the projections for what the tax cut is going to do for the economy, it's noteful now that -- the assumption is they will be permanent, and that's a pretty safe assumption. I think it's going to be hard for whoever is in office to raise taxes on the American people, which is what you would be doing. It would be a tax hike. So there's a safe assumption that it will be permanent. The President certainly hopes so.

It's just an arcane rule under the Emergency Deficit Reduction Act, that says it's not permanent. You know, spending increases are permanent. They don't stop at 10 years. Only tax cuts, under the Emergency Deficit Reduction Act. That's arcane. It's a quirk and it shouldn't exist.

That is all? All right.

  END    11:21 A.M. EDT